India’s first geo thermal power plant is coming up in Chhattisgarh’s newly created Balrampur district, an official statement said here on Sunday.
National Thermal Power Company, a Maharatna Public Sector Undertaking, inked a Memorandum of Undertaking with the state-run Chhattisgarh Renewable Energy and Development Authority for setting up a 300 MW geothermal power plant by harnessing energy from a hot spring at Tattapani in Balrampur district at an estimated cost of `5,000 crore.
“Out of 340 hot springs traced across India by Geological Survey of India in the past three decades, the Tattapani geothermal field is considered the most promising geothermal resource in Central India”, the government press release said.
NTPC, which has already begun exploratory and preparatory work for the power project, expects to start project activities within two years after finalising the Detail Project Report.
The Central PSU has also started interactions with ONGC and other international organisations for drilling.
NTPC also plans to hire an international consultant to prepare the DPR and make available knowhow for implementing the ambitious project.
In USA, about 4,000 MW of power is generated through this new renewable resource of energy.