Eversource’s launch of its new networked geothermal system pilot project in Framingham has drawn significant interest as Massachusetts’ first gas utility-operated ground source heating and cooling project. Eversource’s Geothermal Pilot Project website explains that “[a] geothermal system uses water, wells, piping and pumps to pull heat out of the ground to warm buildings in winter, and pump heat from those buildings back into the ground in summer to cool them using heat pump technology.”

The Framingham pilot will serve 36 residential and commercial buildings (including Framingham Housing Authority units) for a total of 125 customer accounts. According to Eversource, the Framingham pilot is intended to run through two heating and cooling seasons (24 months) and will provide data to help understand the potential for offering larger geothermal programs as an alternative energy source across Eversource’s service territory.