Technological and industrial development in energy consumption have followed a parallel and rapid growth over the past two hundred years. Average per capita energy consumption is estimated to have approximately quadrupled over this period in industrialized countries. The growth in energy consumption has been supported by the use of fossil resources (coal and hydrocarbons) which represent a natural heritage bound to run out. The concern for the environmental effects of the fossil energy era goes together with the study and development of new energy models, based this time on renewable energy sources. The Earth is once again able to provide a solution to the problem, through geothermal heat. The technologies that have allowed the identification and use of fossil resources are the same as those that can foster the transition to the new model, exploiting an energy source internal to the planet but, this time, renewable.
