Enfield, a small, rural town in northeastern North Carolina, received a seed grant of nearly $300,000 last month to jump-start a pilot project to deploy geothermal energy that can heat, cool, and provide hot water to households, bringing cleaner and cheaper energy to the town.
Enfield currently strains under the weight of unaffordable and unreliable energy, with electricity bills averaging $650 a month in the winter. A widespread move to a thermal energy network could have a huge impact on the average Enfield resident, cutting maximum household energy needs by as much as 70%.
“The community is super bought into the idea that we are looking beyond dirty energy,” said Enfield Mayor Mondale Robinson. Robinson hopes to implement the thermal energy network in a pilot project that would serve an upcoming affordable housing development made up of 34 townhouses in southeast Enfield.
The nearly $300,000 investment from BuildUS, a philanthropic foundation aimed at speeding the transition to a cleaner and more equitable economy, is a great first step to realizing the pilot project.
“Enfield is showing how rural communities can lead the clean energy transition,” said Jill Fuglister of BuildUS. “By aligning infrastructure upgrades, geothermal technology, and workforce development for the local community, this project demonstrates an equitable model that other towns can follow.”
But with the Trump administration’s assault on clean energy initiatives and gutting of the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act, huge hurdles remain. Enfield Energy Futures, the nonprofit behind the pilot project, needs to raise the rest of the $5 million needed to complete the pilot project.
Nonetheless, the Enfield team remains optimistic.
“The grant shows the power of embracing and leading with a positive vision, particularly in communities that have seen historic underinvestment,” said Nick Jimenez of the Southern Environmental Law Center and a key member of the Enfield coalition. “It takes courage to try something new, but when you do, people want to get behind it.”
