Fervo Energy

Fervo Energy was founded in 2017 in Houston, Texas by Tim Latimer and Jack Norbeck, who met as graduate students at Stanford University. Latimer, a former BHP drilling engineer who left the oil and gas industry in 2015, built Fervo on a key insight: the horizontal drilling and distributed sensing technologies that unlocked America's shale revolution could also unlock geothermal energy at massive scale. Norbeck, the company's Chief Technology Officer, brings deep expertise in subsurface reservoir engineering. Fervo operates at the intersection of petroleum engineering and the clean energy transition, managing projects across the western United States from its Houston headquarters.

Fervo's published mission is to leverage innovation in geoscience to accelerate the world's transition to sustainable energy. The company was founded specifically to solve the commercialization challenge facing enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) — a technology with enormous theoretical potential that had consistently failed to achieve economic viability using conventional approaches. By adapting horizontal drilling, multi-stage hydraulic stimulation, and fiber optic sensing from oil and gas, Fervo has made it possible to access geothermal heat in locations far beyond traditional volcanic zones, dramatically expanding the potential footprint of firm, carbon-free baseload power.

Fervo is an independent private company. As of late 2025, it has raised over $1.5 billion in total capital, including a $462 million round in December 2025 backed by Google, Mitsui, and JB Straubel (Tesla co-founder). Earlier investors include Breakthrough Energy Ventures, DCVC, Capricorn Investment Group, and Prelude Ventures. The company also holds a $135 million DOE Loan Programs Office loan guarantee secured in 2022. Fervo is widely expected to pursue an initial public offering in 2026.

In 2023, Fervo completed Project Red in northern Nevada — the world's first commercial-scale enhanced geothermal system delivering continuous power to the grid, developed in partnership with Google. Its follow-on Cape Station project in southwest Utah targets 500 MW of total capacity, with Phase 1 (100 MW) targeting commercial operations in 2026. CEO Tim Latimer has been named to TIME100 Next and MIT Technology Review's Innovators Under 35. In 2025, the company launched the Geothermal Sustainable Development Pact — a framework of 37 specific commitments covering community engagement, water conservation, seismicity management, and emissions standards — setting a new benchmark for responsible geothermal growth.