SYLLABUS

GS-3: Infrastructure: Energy; Achievements of Indians in science & technology; indigenization of technology and developing new technology.

Context: India has commissioned its first and deepest 1,000-metre geothermal wells at Puga Valley, Ladakh, paving the way for the country's first 1 MW demonstration-scale geothermal power project and marking a major milestone in India's clean energy transition.

About the Puga Geothermal Project

• It is located in Puga Valley, Ladakh, one of India's most promising geothermal regions.
• The project is being implemented by the ONGC Energy Centre in partnership with the Ladakh Administration and the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), Leh.
• The project aims to establish India's first 1 MW demonstration-scale geothermal power project.
• Two geothermal wells (GT-02 and GT-03) have been successfully drilled to a depth of 1,000 metres at an altitude of over 14,000 feet, making them India's deepest geothermal wells.
• The wells will facilitate reservoir evaluation, power plant planning and future commercial development of geothermal resources in Ladakh.
• The project resumed after the renewal of the five-year tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Ladakh Administration, LAHDC-Leh and the ONGC Energy Centre in June 2026.

About Geothermal Energy

• Geothermal energy is heating energy obtained from beneath the Earth's crust ("Geo" = Earth; "Thermal" = Heat).
• The heat originates from the Earth's core and naturally warms underground rocks and water reservoirs.
• Wells are drilled into underground geothermal reservoirs to extract steam and hot water for electricity generation and direct heating applications.
• Geothermal energy provides clean, reliable, weather-independent and round-the-clock (baseload) renewable power.
• Geothermal systems are generally classified into high, medium and low enthalpy systems based on underground reservoir temperature.
• It is a site-specific renewable energy source, particularly suitable for meeting the energy needs of remote and inaccessible regions.
• Types of Geothermal Power Plants:
  Dry Steam Plant: Uses natural steam directly from underground reservoirs to drive turbines.
  Flash Steam Plant: Converts high-pressure hot water into steam to run turbines.
  Binary Cycle Plant: Transfers heat from geothermal water to a secondary low-boiling-point fluid, which vaporises and drives the turbine.

Status and Potential in India

• India has an estimated geothermal potential of around 10,600 MW, with the Geological Survey of India (GSI) identifying 381 hot springs and 42 promising geothermal sites for power generation and direct-use applications.
• GSI has identified 10 geothermal provinces in India: Himalayan Geothermal Province, Naga-Lusai, Andaman Nicobar Islands, Son-Narmada Tapi (SONATA), West Coast, Cambay Graben, Aravalli, Mahanadi, Godavari, and South Indian Cratonic.
• The IEA projects India’s geothermal market potential at 2 GW by 2035 and nearly 100 GW by 2045.
• Globally, less than 17 GW of geothermal capacity is operational, led by the US, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
• The National Policy on Geothermal Energy (2025) aims to make geothermal energy a major pillar of India’s renewable energy transition, supporting energy security and the 2070 Net Zero Goal through international cooperation, technology transfer, and joint R&D.

Significance of the Project

• Demonstrates India's capability to harness geothermal energy as a reliable baseload renewable energy source.
• Strengthens energy security by providing uninterrupted electricity in remote high-altitude regions such as Ladakh.
• Supports Ladakh's carbon-neutral vision and India's 2070 Net Zero Goal.
• Facilitates future commercial development of geothermal resources through reservoir evaluation and technology demonstration.
• Creates opportunities for greenhouse agriculture, aquaculture, food processing, tourism and other direct-use applications, promoting regional socio-economic development.
• Provides reliable 24×7 baseload renewable power, complementing intermittent renewable sources such as solar and wind energy.

Challenges

• High upfront capital costs and drilling expenditure make geothermal projects capital intensive.
• Exploration risks and complex subsurface geological conditions increase technical uncertainty.
• High-altitude regions face extreme weather, rugged terrain and a limited annual working season.
• Environmental and community concerns, including the management of geothermal fluids, require careful planning and sustainable project implementation.
• Limited private sector participation due to high exploration risk and capital-intensive project development.

Way Forward

• Effectively implement the National Policy on Geothermal Energy (2025) to accelerate exploration and commercial deployment.
• Strengthen research, indigenous technology development, international collaboration and capacity building for geothermal exploration and drilling.
• Promote public-private investment, including 100% FDI, viability gap funding and utilisation of abandoned oil and gas wells.
• Build on the experience of the Puga demonstration project to develop geothermal resources in other identified geothermal provinces while ensuring environmental sustainability and community participation.