India Commissions Its First Geothermal Wells in Ladakh's Puga Valley
#GS-3 #Science & Technology #Energy #Environment #Sustainable Development #Geography #National
Why in News
- The Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh officially commissioned India's first and deepest twin geothermal wells in the Puga Valley of eastern Ladakh.
- Developed by the **ONGC Energy Centre**, these **1,000-meter-deep** wells will supply steam to India's first **1 MW** demonstration geothermal power plant.
About Geothermal Energy at Puga Valley
- The Puga Valley project represents India's first major step in capturing geothermal energy, which harnesses natural underground heat to generate clean power around the clock.
- This energy facility sits at an extreme high altitude of more than **14,000 feet** in the **Puga Valley** region.
Formation of Geothermal Wells
- The Indian tectonic plate continuously collides with the Eurasian plate, creating deep underground fractures and mantle heat along the Indus Suture Zone.
- This ongoing geological activity brings intense heat from deep inside the Earth close to the shallow upper crust.
- Melted snow and ice water seep into subterranean rock cracks, where the extreme heat of underground rocks turns the water into steam.
- Under high pressure, this hot fluid moves back toward the surface, getting trapped in deep reservoirs or bursting out as natural hot springs and sulfur vents.
Key Features of Puga Geothermal Wells
- Engineers successfully completed drilling two targeted geothermal wells down to a depth of **1,000 meters**.
- Measurements showed a temperature of **135°C** at a depth of **400 meters**, while the deepest sections are estimated to reach **200°C to 240°C**.
- Completing deep geothermal drilling under severe high-altitude weather conditions demonstrates India's growing technical expertise in clean energy exploration.
- The steam from these wells will immediately power India's first **1 MWe** pilot plant, paving the way for larger commercial power networks.
Significance
- The geothermal plant provides **24×7** continuous baseload power, reducing reliance on diesel generators and strengthening energy security across remote Ladakh.
- By replacing polluting diesel engines with clean thermal energy, the project supports India's **Net Zero** carbon targets while safeguarding the sensitive Himalayan ecosystem.