Bedrock uses autonomous drilling technology and subsurface simulation software to efficiently enable installations of geothermal heating and cooling faster than traditional geothermal, particularly in space constrained urban environments.
Bedrock Energy
Geothermal-as-a-Service
Turnkey geothermal heating and cooling delivered faster than traditional geothermal
Description
Bedrock Energy provides ultra-efficient clean geothermal heating and cooling systems. Their proprietary Geothermal-as-a-Service drilling and technology platform drives down the cost, space, time, and risk of constructing geothermal systems by 3-5x, and makes geothermal increasingly accessible for buildings in space constrained urban environments — enabling large commercial, industrial, and multifamily buildings to transition away from fossil fuel-based HVAC.
Use Cases
Include geothermal in my electrification strategy
Incorporate geothermal in my HVAC strategy
Key Differentiators
Reduced costs, timelines + risk - The Geothermal-as-a-Service platform drives down the cost, space, time, and risk of constructing geothermal systems by 3-5x
Urban environment ready - The platform is designed to make geothermal increasingly accessible for buildings in space-constrained urban environments.
Sustained cost-savings over time - Geothermal heat pumps save more than 50% compared to Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) and air source heat pumps
Cost Savings
Geothermal energy and demand charge savings are ~50% compared to traditional air source HVAC systems. Geothermal O&M can often be similarly around ~50% cost savings.
About
Decarbonization Impacts
Operational Emissions
Geothermal HVAC systems replace fossil-fuel-based heating with high-efficiency heat pumps. By reducing installation complexity and making geothermal viable in dense urban environments, Bedrock helps building owners acheive both direct emissions reductions and long-term electrification.
Project + Building Compatibility
Project Type
Both existing building retrofits and new construction
Essential Building Characteristics
For existing buildings, drillable space such as a parking lot, green area, open setback. For new buildings, space under foundation during construction
Ideal Building Characteristics
New construction buildings or Existing buildings that have with exterior or wall packaged HVAC (e.g. packaged RTUs), water-source heat pump system with central plant, or <140F hydronic heating system
Typically 1-5 story buildings
Bonus if HVAC in an existing building is within 2-4 years of remaining life
Minimum Project Size
50,000 sqft
Ideal Project Size
200,000 sqft+
NY Contractor Availability
Bedrock primarily operates in upstate NY
Other Screening Criteria
Other Screening Criteria: Buildings should be run by an operator who is able to support a 3-5 year payback period if paying for the geothermal system upfront. If the building is leveraging a no-upfront-cost model, the building should be able to engage in a ~15yr offtake contract. If the building is engaging in a zero-upfront cost model and the owner is not the building occupant, then it's best if there is a creditworthy single-tenant to cover contract payments. If the project is serving a multi-residential site, then the owner or HOA should include contract payments in existing monthly fee collections from the occupants.
Example Installations
Installed By
CIM Group
Town of Hayden, Colorado
Case Studies
Resident Experience
During Installation
One Bedrock crew can drill and construct approximately one 1000-foot borehole in a day with construction noise of ~60dB vs. ~70-85 dB for conventional drilling rigs. For context, a typical washing machine emits about 80 dB.
Post Installation
Post-installation, the building occupants enjoy 50% lower HVAC bills, less disruption, and less pollution.
Financing
NY Incentives/Financing Resources
30-50% federal tax credits, 179D tax incentives, and NYS Clean Heat rebates are all very stable incentives
Upfront Costs
If a customer chooses to finance and own the system themselves, the upfront costs of the additional geo-energy asset may be about $10k/ton of HVAC load. Often times, this upfront cost only holds a small net cost premium due to incentives and efficiency-related rebates, and the payback may be 2-5 years, or sometimes even faster.
Ongoing Costs
If a customer chooses to finance and own the system themselves, there are no ongoing costs of a geo system separate from the now-lower costs of HVAC
If a customer chooses to have the system financed by a 3rd-party owner, then there may be no upfront costs, but the ongoing costs will be a 'geo asset lease' that is lower than the cost of alternative system ownership.
Payback Period
2-5 years
Operations, Management, and Maintenance
Operations and Maintenance Requirements
Bedrock monitors key indicators of system performance through sensors on surface heat pumps and on the geo-field.
Ease of Operations
There is minimal user learning curve for facilities maintenance staff with water-source heat pump experience or similar hydronic HVAC equipment.
There is minor user learning curve for facilities staff who are only experienced wih older boilers, window units, or other older HVAC. However, WSHPs are low maintenance and the learning process is quick and standardized.
Service Support
HVAC equipment comes from standard Trane, Carrier, AAON, or other OEMs and therefore service support can be provided by those same providers' service networks
Future Proofing
Geothermal systems are the longest-lasting and lowest-maintenance-cost HVAC systems, and are inherently futureproofed against grid constraints and regulatory changes for higher-performance buildings.
Data + Performance
Bedrock monitors the system through installed sensors on surface pumps to track key indicators of system performance, such as entering and exiting water tempature, pressure, and flow rate. This information can be shared with the building operator.
Specifications
Bedrock's subsurface geothermal installation follow guidelines of the International Ground Source Heat Pump Association
(IGSHPA) and the accredited installer requirements.
Water-source heat pump HVAC follows the same product certifications of any HVAC equipment.
