Geothermal vacations in Algarve (Portugal)
Overview
The Algarve region is known for its beautiful beaches and picturesque landscape, rendering it a major touristic hotspot in Portugal. For Ombria Algarve – a complex of luxurious apartments and a 5-star hotel -, tourism blends with sustainability and innovation, resulting in a sustainable development project where geothermal energy plays a key role.
As a pioneer project in continental Portugal, Ombria Algarve is using shallow geothermal to ensure local and green heat all-year round for space heating, hot water and the complex’s swimming pools. During the summer, the geothermal system provides clean cooling, an important need in one of Portugal’s hottest regions.
The project
With the intent of building an eco-friendly resort fully respecting the region’s sensitive ecosystem, Ombria Algarve was fully aware of the need to consider energy efficient and carbon-free solutions. Wishing to deliver clean heating and cooling without visually disturbing the landscape, the solution was to build a system using geothermal heat pumps taking advantage of the constant underground temperature.
A first-of-its-kind project in Portugal, where the potential for shallow geothermal hasn’t been fully unlocked yet, Ombria Algarve hopes that its system can inspire future projects in the country.
Photo by Postal
Technical Details:
The geothermal system at Ombria Algarve has a heating capacity of 2,5 MW and a cooling capacity of 1,3 MW, making it the largest geothermal installation in the Iberian Peninsula.