Your ideal location for a geothermal power plant is on active volcanic terrain. The enormous ground heat makes for a very inexpensive method to power a steam turbine. Naturally, very few choose to live in such extreme conditions, so geothermal is just not a big player in most countries energy scenes, although there are still considerable geothermal opportunities to be had with hot springs. There's just one exception - Iceland, a volcanic island - which receives almost 100% of its power from geothermal resources.

Perhaps that's why then there are very few listed companies engaged in geothermal energy power production. But NYSE-listed Ormat Technologies is one of them. Based in the remarkably appropriately named town of Sparks in Nevada, Ormat Tech's business is the design, development, building, ownership, and operation of geothermal power plants and recovered energy-based power plants.

And late last week, Q2 profits were up by 16%. Ormat closed today at $20.59, very close to it's high of $21.10.