Editing Geothermal power in Iceland (section)

==Consumption==
[[File:"Under-floor_heating"_in_the_street.jpg|thumb|An example of geothermal snow-melting infrastructure under a street in Reykjavik]]
As Iceland is situated in a highly geothermal location, 70.38% of total energy used in the country comes from geothermal sources as of 2020.<ref name=":82">{{Cite web |date=2021-05-26 |title=Primary Energy Use in Iceland 1940-2020 |url=https://orkustofnun.is/gogn/Talnaefni/OS-2021-T008-01.pdf |website=Orkustofnun}}</ref> This means {{convert|173.2|PJ|GWh}} of the total {{convert|246.1|PJ|GWh}} of primary energy used by Iceland in 2020 is from a geothermal source.<ref name=":82" /> The geothermal energy is then used in two main ways: direct application and indirectly via electricity generation.<ref name=":62">{{Cite web |title=Direct Use of Geothermal Resources |url=https://nea.is/geothermal/direct-utilization/nr/91 |access-date=2022-10-31 |website=National Energy Authority of Iceland |language=en}}</ref>

=== Direct applications ===
Most geothermal energy in Iceland is used for heating activities.<ref name=":62" /> As of 2020, the primary use of geothermal heat is space heating {{convert|23,094|TJ|GWh}}), followed by heated swimming pools {{convert|3,628|TJ|GWh}}), snow melting {{convert|2,036|TJ|GWh}}, fish farming {{convert|1,404|TJ|GWh}}, greenhouses {{convert|429|TJ|GWh}}, and industry usage {{convert|393|TJ|GWh}}.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-12-01 |title=Final Heat Use in Iceland 2019 by District Heating Area |url=https://orkustofnun.is/gogn/Talnaefni/OS-2020-T010-01.pdf |website=Orkustofnun}}</ref> As these uses are reliant solely on geothermal heat, they do not result in the energy losses that come with generating electricity. Instead, many of these direct applications use water as the means of transmission. In Iceland's capital [[Reykjavík]], hot water from 100° to 300°C is used to heat homes, then piped into plastic tubing underneath streets and sidewalks at {{cvt|30|C}} to melt snow and ice.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2013-12-11 |title=Heated sidewalks: Iceland has them, Saskatoon wants them |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatoon/heated-sidewalks-iceland-has-them-saskatoon-wants-them-1.2459674 |access-date=|website=CBC News}}</ref>[[File:Iceland electricity production.svg|thumb|Iceland electricity production by source]]

=== Electricity generation ===
Iceland has recently been self-sufficient in producing electricity, consistently meeting or exceeding electricity demand in the country mainly through geothermal and hydropower generation.<ref name=":1" /> In 2020, 99.94% of electricity in Iceland was produced by hydro and geothermal means, with 13,157 and 5,961 [[Gigawatt-hours|gigawatt hours (GWh)]] produced respectively.<ref name=":92" /> Geothermal energy accounts for over a quarter of Iceland's electric power production.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Kjeld |first1=Alexandra |last2=Bjarnadottir |first2=Helga Johanna |last3=Olafsdottir |first3=Ragnheiður |date=2022-11-01 |title=Life cycle assessment of the Theistareykir geothermal power plant in Iceland |journal=Geothermics |language=en |volume=105 |pages=102530 |doi=10.1016/j.geothermics.2022.102530 |bibcode=2022Geoth.10502530K |issn=0375-6505|doi-access=free }}</ref>

However, after the droughts in the summer season of 2021, low reservoir levels for [[hydropower]] generation along with increasing electricity demand in the nation led to an electricity supply crunch.<ref name=":32">{{Cite web |last=Sigurdardottir |first=Ragnhildur |date=2022-04-09 |title=Geothermal Powerhouse Iceland Hit by Lack of Electricity |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-10/geothermal-powerhouse-iceland-struggles-with-lack-of-electricity |access-date=2022-10-24 |website=Bloomberg}}</ref> To suppress electricity demand, the Icelandic government had to cut back electricity from certain industries.<ref name=":32" /> This supply crunch caused by fluctuations in hydropower generation has Iceland considering the expansion of power generation infrastructure.<ref name=":32" />