Bedford, Indiana, April 18, 2022 – U.S. Representative Trey Hollingsworth, Indiana 9th District, visited the Geo-Flo plant in Bedford, Indiana, on April 18. Rep. Hollingsworth’s second factory tour of Geo-Flo comes at an important time as the United States again faces questions of energy independence, rising fossil fuel prices, and the importance of renewable energy such as geothermal heating and cooling systems. “Not only has Geo-Flo Corporation invested in Indiana for decades, providing Hoosiers jobs and helping bolster our state’s economy, but their work in geothermal heating and cooling has made clean and renewable technology increasingly accessible to Americans and businesses across the country as our nation collectively underscores the importance of finding sustainable energy sources and strengthening our energy independence,” said Rep. Trey Hollingsworth. These systems extract heat from the earth’s surface and use this energy to heat homes and business in cold months and reverse the process to cool buildings during the summer. Geothermal heat pumps eliminate the point-of-use of fossil fuels such as propane, fuel oil, and natural gas at a substantial savings to consumers and help move the country toward energy independence.
Company president Tom Wyer provided Hollingsworth with an update of Geo-Flo’s business and the industry. Wyer recounted how the residential geothermal market contracted around 50% in 2017 when the omnibus bill passed by Congress in December 2015 extended tax credits for the solar industry but left out geothermal. Rep. Hollingsworth did lend support to H.R. 1090 in 2016 that would have provided equity for the geo industry, but it ultimately failed. Fortunately, a spending bill signed into law in February 2018 rectified the situation; however, the damage caused the industry and Geo-Flo’s business to recover at a very slow rate only recently rebounding to pre-2017 numbers. Wyer reminded Rep. Hollingworth that the current tax provisions are set to expire at the end of 2023 and Congressional action is needed to ensure a stable business environment that will allow companies like Geo-Flo to hire employees and commit to large expenditures such as new CNC machines.
According to Wyer, Rep. Hollingsworth appeared receptive to the message. “Trey seemed pleased that his past support has had a positive impact on our business and the other companies in Indiana that manufacture equipment, install systems, and support the geothermal industry”, stated Wyer. He continued, “I was impressed that he understands this technology provides good jobs here in Indiana and across the U.S. that cannot be exported and I’m happy he mentioned the importance of maintaining a level playing field for all technologies”. Supporting a technology that saves consumers money, uses domestic components (nearly all geothermal heat pumps installed in North America are made in the U.S.A.) and labor, and has a positive environmental impact is not only important for energy independence and the economy, but also good political policy as younger voters with growing environmental concerns have become a political force