Ladakh will pursue clean energy after Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena approved a five-year extension of the memorandum of understanding with the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) to develop India’s first geothermal power project at Puga valley, at an altitude of over 14,000 feet in eastern Ladakh. The extension renews the agreement first signed on 6 February 2021 between the Ladakh administration, the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Leh (LAHDC) and the ONGC energy centre, which expired on 5 February 2026, and follows a request from ONGC citing delays caused by harsh weather and difficult terrain. Officials said the continuation was approved for strategic reasons related to regional energy security and sustainable development.

Under the revised memorandum of understanding, the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation will establish a one Megawatt (MW) pilot geothermal power plant in Puga valley and prepare a detailed project report for large-scale commercial exploitation of geothermal resources in Ladakh. The pilot will inform resource assessment and commercial planning for the detailed project report. ONGC Energy Centre will deepen the existing geothermal well to 1,000 metres during the 2026 working season and subsequently drill another well of similar depth in the next phase. Testing, evaluation and commissioning of the pilot plant are expected during the 2026-27 financial year.

The Puga valley and Chumathang lie within the Himalayan geothermal belt, where tectonic activity generates intense underground heat and prior drilling has tapped high-pressure steam and hot fluids. Officials reported that drilling in 2025 reached a depth of 405 metres and produced temperatures exceeding 200 degrees Celsius at around 400 metres. Geothermometric studies have indicated subsurface temperatures in excess of 240 degrees Celsius, considered suitable for power generation. These measurements will guide testing, evaluation and optimisation of the pilot plant before any commercial phase.

Authorities expect the geothermal initiative, alongside an expanding solar programme, to reduce reliance on conventional fuels, cut carbon emissions and boost the Union Territory’s credentials as a renewable energy hub. Saxena characterised the project as strategically important and said it would strengthen energy security and contribute to a vision of making the region carbon neutral and environmentally sustainable.