Puga Valley Geothermal Wells: India’s First 1 MW Pilot Base
Why in the news
Ladakh LG V.K. Saxena formally put two deep geothermal wells into service in Puga Valley; they are India’s first and deepest twin wells. They form the technical base for India’s first demonstration-scale geothermal power plant.
Key facts
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Location | Puga Valley, eastern Ladakh, above 14,000 feet |
| Executing agency | ONGC Energy Centre |
| Driller and advisers | SEROS Drilling Pvt Ltd; Iceland’s ÍSOR as consultants |
| Depth | Two wells of 1,000 m each |
| Timeline | First reached depth 22 May 2026; second started 3 June, done 8 July 2026 |
| Temperature | 135°C at 400 m; 200-240°C or more expected in the deepest parts |
| Use | Steam for India’s first 1 MWe pilot plant |
How such wells form
- Heat source: the Indian-Eurasian plate collision along the Indus Suture Zone creates faults and magmatic activity, bringing mantle heat near the crust.
- Fluid circulation: melted snow and glacier water (meteoric water) enters fractures and is heated by hot rock.
- Ascent: hot, lighter water rises under pressure, gets trapped in permeable reservoirs or emerges as hot springs and sulphur fumaroles.
Significance
- Geothermal gives clean, round-the-clock (baseload) power, unlike intermittent sources.
- Useful for energy security in remote and border areas; the foundation for later multi-megawatt plants.
- India’s geothermal potential is put at around 10 GW; other sites include Tattapani and Manikaran.
Exam angle
- Puga Valley = Ladakh; agency = ONGC Energy Centre; geological feature = Indus Suture Zone.
- Fumaroles are surface vents releasing steam and gases such as sulphur.
- Puga is not India’s only geothermal site.