Arunachal gears up to host India’s first 50kW indigenous geothermal power plant

In a significant step towards sustainable energy development, the Director of the Centre for Earth Sciences and Himalayan Studies (CESHS), along with a team of scientists, visited the demonstration site of an indigenously developed 20kW geothermal power plant at Shriram Institute for Industrial Research (SRI), New Delhi.

Dr. Bhupesh Sharma, Geothermal Project Manager and scientist at SIIR, presented a detailed update on the progress of the 20kW pilot demonstration unit. He explained that multiple trials were first conducted using a smaller 5kW lab-scale model to better understand the operational challenges of India's indigenous bipolar process technology, particularly at a low temperature of just 68°C.

The lessons learned led to successful engineering upgrades in the 20kW demonstration plant. These include a shift to organic working fluids with a lower vaporisation point, the introduction of a recuperator heat exchanger to reclaim heat from turbine exhaust vapours, and the use of a preheater to warm the fluid returning from the condenser. These innovations are crucial for maximising efficiency at lower geothermal temperatures.

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Dr. Sharma added that the current 20kW plant in Manuguru has the potential to be replicated and scaled across other parts of the country, including the Himalayan region.

In a key development, CESHS and SRRI agreed to formalise their collaboration through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The MoU will focus on the exploration of geothermal energy resources in Arunachal Pradesh. The partnership aims to establish India’s first fully indigenous 50kW geothermal power plant operating at a record low temperature of 68°C by next year.

This pioneering project positions Arunachal Pradesh at the forefront of India’s clean energy transition and geothermal research.