Founder in Residence, Geothermal Energy
Marble
About Marble
Marble is a climate tech venture studio. Our north star is to erase billions of tons from annual greenhouse gas emissions and create a thriving future.
We partner with scientists, engineers and operators to create new deep tech companies that solve hard climate problems — slash emissions, remove carbon from the atmosphere, and cool the planet — while reshaping multi-billion $ industries.
We're proud to be backed by leading climate investors across Europe and the US.
Unlocking Geothermal Potential
Global power demand is due to triple by 2050 as electrification and living standards grow. Abundant clean electricity is paramount to the decarbonisation of buildings, transportation and industry, along with carbon dioxide removal and desalination.
Geothermal, available 24/7, could provide abundant clean firm power and low-grade heat. Only 0.1% of the Earth’s heat content could meet global energy needs for over 2 million years. The US alone holds 16 TW of geothermal potential - a thousand times more than worldwide installed capacity. Moreover, geothermal has the lowest land use and mineral requirement of any renewable resource, and could scale globally with oil & gas workforce.
Conventional geothermal plants are only viable in areas which combine optimal heat and fluid flow conditions. Projects outside of these areas have been plagued by high upfront capital costs (ex: drilling) and resource development risk.
The sector is undergoing a rapid transformation, with innovations aiming at improving economics and reducing failure rate. Examples include enhanced systems, closed-loop systems, drilling innovations, and various co-products (e.g. lithium, energy storage, CCS).
We are exploring novel approaches which can unlock the sheer potential of geothermal energy to power the net zero economy, almost anywhere.
The Opportunity
We are interested in a broad range of opportunities to leverage untapped geothermal potential with compelling economics. We are particularly interested in approaches which be applied to broad geographies, especially in Europe and America.
Examples of opportunities we are considering:
- Enhanced Geothermal: better ways to enhance fluid flow with more accurate permeability predictions, more precise directional drilling, capex reduction etc
- Closed Loop Geothermal: scaling materials with very high thermal conductivity, which could increase heat recovery in closed-loop systems
- Super Deep, Super Hot Geothermal: advanced materials for well construction (improved conductivity, corrosion resistance, etc), advanced drilling technologies
- Energy Co-Products: synergies with energy storage and solar, but potentially other products as well (e.g. hydrogen, CO2 storage, minerals, etc)
- Direct Use: could we scale geothermal district heating in many more geographies, or directly use geothermal heat for industrial processes
- Exploration and Monitoring: improve site identification and characterisation, improve monitoring of existing wells, etc.
We are looking for a Founder in Residence to join our next cohort, to explore these approaches further and accelerate the geothermal renaissance for energy abundance.
➡️ Apply Here or see the Programme Structure
Skills & Profile
We are looking for an entrepreneurial engineer with relevant industry experience in geothermal or related sectors (e.g. oil & gas, mining) to explore this area, and eventually create a high-impact climate company with Marble.
Examples of relevant backgrounds:
- Project engineering / management with industry experience in end-to-end development of natural resource project (e.g. geothermal, oil & gas)
- OR Reservoir / production engineering with experience in reservoir modelling, resource assessment, well management, production optimisation, etc. Exposure to non conventional resource development methods is a strong plus!
- OR Drilling engineering with knowledge of various oil & gas techniques, and a passion for applying them to geothermal development
- OR Materials science with experience in developing highly conductive, corrosion resistant materials for super deep wells
We encourage you to apply even if you don’t feel you meet all requirements. Above all, we value intelligence, creativity and Founder Potential.
Especially if you recognise yourself below:
- You can’t wait to start your own company (or your next one)
- You are a pragmatic optimist on a mission to tackle climate change
- You are outcome focused and action oriented - you make things happen
- You are a great communicator - you can convince others to follow you
- You love to break down ambitious goals into actionable milestones
- You understand that innovation starts with people - not ideas
What We Offer
As a Founder-in-Residence, you will join other stellar individuals who also believe in the need for deep tech solutions to solve hard climate problems.
Together, we would be scoping high potential approaches before converging on the most promising one and finding your future co-founders
We offer (among other things)
- A €2,500 to €3,000 monthly allowance during the programme
- A €250,000 pre-seed investment on startup creation if you’re successful. You and your team will own 80% of the company at pre-seed.
- Full-stack support in our venture creation programme. Mentorship and guidance at every step of the way
- Hands on support across technology and market research, landing interviews with experts and customers, techno economics, roadmap and scale up strategy, IP strategy, team building, advisor sourcing, and more
- Access to an unparalleled network across science, industry, talent, investors, mentors, climate tech founders, curated vendors and suppliers
- Access to our research insights, knowledge base and founder resources
- Weekly check-ins, work sessions in our Paris HQ (or remote) and continuous peer learning with other programme participants
- Seed Fundraising support after the programme. Introductions to the best seed investors from our network and help with term sheet negotiation.
- Founder Visa sponsorship if you wish to relocate to France. Remote participation is possible, preferably from Europe and with regular in-person meetings.
How to Apply
We are looking for the best candidate - so you are welcome to apply as soon as possible.
➡️ Apply Here or see the Programme Structure
We believe that a diverse group of minds is key to solving the climate crisis. We encourage women and people of colour to apply.
Studies have shown that under-represented candidates are less likely to apply for an opportunity unless they feel they meet every single qualification.
We are committed to building a diverse, inclusive and mission-driven cohort. If you’re excited about the programme but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with what you read on our website, we encourage you to apply anyways!
FAQs
For a full list of FAQs, please visit our website.