Hungary is a country with excellent geothermal characteristics. The countries with the best geothermal values in the world are the ones situated at oceanic and continental crusts, since the values of the geothermal gradient are far higher on active volcanic areas (Italy, Iceland, Indonesia, the Philippines, Japan, and U.S.A.). Hungary is situated in the Carpathian Basin, on a 5-6-km thick Pannonian sediment. The reason for the favourable thermal energy values can be explained with the development history of the Pannonian Basin. The value of the geothermal gradient of 50C/100m is significant on both the European and world levels, the density of heat flux is of 90-100 mW/m2 compared to the continental value of 65 mW/m2. This is a consequence of the tailing of the lithosphere during the Middle Miocene. As a result, the asthenosphere got closer to the surface, thus the value of the geothermal gradient and the heat flux increased as well.
| Csatolmány | Méret |
|---|---|
 Geothermal Potential of Central Eastern Europe | 5.17 MB |