Eversource begins drilling on Framingham geothermal project

Five workers look at a piece of large equipment.

Photo | Courtesy of Eversource Workers look at a drill which will help bore 90 holes in Framingham's surface as part of a clean energy project.

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By Timothy Doyle

Boston utility company Eversource has begun drilling 90 bore holes, each 600-700 feet deep, as part of its effort to connect 140 customers in Framingham with geothermal energy.

The company announced in April that construction on the MetroWest project would begin pending agreements with a contractor to drill the holes.

The utility has partnered with Celsius Energy, a French company with American operations based in Cambridge. Celsius specializes in geothermal engineering.

Forty buildings including residential homes, a cabinet store, fire station, Framingham Housing Authority buildings, and Massachusetts Bay Community College will be connected to a geothermal loop, which pumps warm air from deep below the Earth’s surface to heat the structures, according to a Thursday press release from Eversource.

“Over the next two years, we’re going to study if this technology is cost-effective for our customers, and whether we can expand this kind of networked geothermal system to other customers and communities beyond this neighborhood in Framingham,” Eversource President of Gas Operations Bill Ackley said in the press release. “We’ve been working hard installing main and other equipment for several months, and putting drills into the ground is another major step toward making our geothermal pilot system a reality.”

The project is expected to be complete prior to the 2023 heating season.