Ahmedabad: Gautam Adani, Chairman of the Adani Group, on Saturday said it was a great honour to meet Bhutan Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay, as the company aims to cement a significant partnership towards energy sector in the neighbouring country.
Earlier in the day, Adani Power and Druk Green Power Corp Ltd. (DGPC), Bhutan’s state-owned generation utility, signed the shareholders agreement (SHA) to set up a 570 MW Wangchhu hydroelectric project in Bhutan.
“It was a great honour to meet with @PMBhutan @tsheringtobgay and establish the start of what I see as a very significant partnership between the Adani Group and Bhutan’s energy sector,” said Gautam Adani.
Tobgay also posted on X that “this evening, I joined in witnessing the signing of the 570 MW Wangchhu Hydropower Project agreement between Adani Power Ltd. and DGPC, a milestone in Bhutan–India clean energy cooperation”.
An in-principle understanding on the power purchase agreement (PPA) was also initiated and the developers also signed the concession agreement (CA) for the project with the Royal Government of Bhutan.
The move paves the way for Adani Power and DGPC to initiate the implementation of the peaking run-of-river Wangchhu hydroelectric project on a BOOT (Build, Own, Operate, Transfer) model.
The Wangchhu project will see an investment of about Rs 60 billion in setting up the renewable energy power plant and related infrastructures. With the preparation of the detailed project report already completed, construction work is expected to begin by the first half of 2026, and the completion is targeted within five years of groundbreaking.
As Bhutan endeavours to become a High Income GNH (Gross National Happiness) Country within the next decade, access to reliable and affordable electricity from its renewable energy resources such as hydropower and solar will be critical to enable other investments to drive its economic growth.
Bhutan is also bullish on the upcoming Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC) project, highlighting its potential benefits for both Bhutan and India. Spread over 2,500 square km areas, the GMC is a Special Administrative Region in Bhutan, envisioned by King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and it is an innovative urban development project that integrates economic growth with mindfulness, holistic living, and sustainability.
–IANS
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