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NTPC looking at Modi’s US visit to revive geothermal units

September 1: NTPC Ltd Chairman and Managing Director Arup Roy Choudhury is optimistic that the upcoming visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the US will lead to some sort of technology transfer for development of geothermal power plants in India.

“At present, there is no established technology to set up such projects. We hope that when Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) visits the US, then, may be, we will tie up with some player with experience in geothermal technology,” Choudhury told reporters in Kolkata on August 29.

He pointed out that NTPC has signed an MoU with the Chhattisgarh government for setting up a geothermal power plant.

“But there is no progress on the project (Chhattisgarh and it is only at the DPR stage. There is potential for a geothermal project in Chhattisgarh and the government has signed an MoU with us. We will prepare the DPR and at the same time look at the technology aspects,” he said.

He, however, accepted that NTPC has limited knowledge in the geothermal space and that neither is there much expertise in the area in the entire country.

“Thus, we will try to explore these aspects when we visit the US (along with Prime Minster). Whether or not we will be looking at a tie-up with any US-based company for developing a geothermal project in India will depend on the PM’s visit to the country. We expect some discussions to take place on this subject during the upcoming visit,” he said.

“We will definitely consider if we are approached by any US company,” the CMD added.