Ladakh Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena has approved the extension of an agreement for the country’s first geothermal power project in the Puga Valley.
The initiative, led by Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), is set to come up at an altitude of more than 14,000 feet in eastern Ladakh.
Officials said the administration approved a five-year extension of the memorandum of understanding signed between the Ladakh administration, the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), Leh, and ONGC Energy Centre.
The earlier agreement had expired in February this year, with ONGC seeking additional time due to delays caused by difficult terrain and extreme weather conditions in the Himalayan region.
As part of the revised plan, ONGC will establish a 1-MWe pilot geothermal power plant in the Puga Valley while simultaneously preparing a detailed project report for large-scale commercial development of geothermal resources across Ladakh.
