Currently starting a dive into geothermal energy. Here’s some info on how geothermal energy for data centers could reduce water consumption:

Water (or another coolant fluid) is still needed to cool data centers powered by geothermal energy, but the type and volume of water usage change significantly depending on the technology employed.

Closed-Loop Systems: Geothermal cooling often utilizes closed-loop systems (such as ground-source heat pumps or subsurface thermal energy storage) where fluid circulates in sealed pipes. These systems do not consume water through evaporation, requiring only initial fills and occasional top-offs for leaks. This contrasts with traditional evaporative cooling towers, which are the primary source of massive water consumption in data centers.

Electricity Generation vs. Cooling: While geothermal energy provides baseload power, the water footprint depends on the generation method. Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) and many traditional plants use significantly less water than fossil fuel plants, but some geothermal technologies may still require water for cooling the power plant itself.

Overall Impact: Adopting geothermal cooling can drastically reduce or eliminate on-site water consumption (up to 100% reduction in facility-level use), but it does not remove the need for a thermal management fluid. Furthermore, if the geothermal plant itself uses water-intensive cooling methods, or if the data center relies on the grid for backup, some water usage remains.