Geothermal Field Development Project In Leh

 A historical  agreement has been signed in Leh for establishing India's first geothermal field development project. It is a step towards achieving the goal of carbon-neutral Ladakh.

On Saturday, in the presence of Ladakh Lieutenant Governor R K Mathur and MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal, the pact was signed on the sidelines of the first development conclave in Ladakh between the Ladakh Union Territory Government, the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC)-Leh and the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) Energy Centre.

Exploration and analysis of geothermal fields began in India in 1970. 350 geothermal energy locations in the country have been found by the GSI (Geological Survey of India). The most promising of these is in Ladakh's Puga valley. The estimated geothermal energy capacity in India is approximately 10000 MW.

The Union Territory Administration of Ladakh signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the ONGC Energy Centre in the presence of Lieutenant Governor Radha Krishna Mathur in Leh, in its first step towards making the strategic area of Ladakh carbon neutral for clean power.

Phase 1 of this pilot project includes the generation of 1 megawatt (MW) of power generation capacity and the provision of 100% free power to the general public, the spokesman said, adding that the ONGC Energy Centre is the implementing agency for this pilot project.

Phase 2 will entail deeper and lateral geothermal reservoir exploration by drilling the optimum number of wells and setting up a higher capacity demo plant in Ladakh, while Phase 3 will be a commercial project, the spokesman said, according to the capacity discovered.

Namgyal thanked Mathur for helping Ladakh into a new era of growth and emphasized the 'Vocal for Local' idea to make Ladakh a self-sustainable area.