NHPC director reviews progress of Subansiri Lower hydel project, stresses early commissioning of remaining units

Dibrugarh: Sanjay Kumar Singh, director (projects), NHPC Ltd, visited the 2,000-MW Subansiri Lower Hydro Electric Project (SLHEP) at Gerukamukh on the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border on Thursday to review the progress of ongoing civil and electromechanical works at the project site.During the visit, Singh inspected the dam area, diversion tunnel inlet and outlet areas, and the powerhouse complex. He reviewed preparedness for the commissioning of Unit 5 and assessed the progress of Units 6 to 8, including critical electromechanical works, concreting activities for Units 7 and 8, and protection works in the diversion tunnel inlet area.Singh directed the executing agencies to expedite all remaining activities in accordance with the project schedule to facilitate the early commissioning of the balance units.

He appreciated the dedication and hard work of the project team and encouraged them to maintain the same commitment and enthusiasm to ensure timely completion.He was briefed by Rajendra Prasad, executive director (in charge) and head of Subansiri Lower Project, PK Ray, executive director (HM and E&M Works), and other senior officers of the project.The SLHEP is a run-of-river project on the Subansiri River at Gerukamukh, designed with eight units of 250 MW each to deliver a total installed capacity of 2,000 MW, making it India’s largest hydroelectric project once fully commissioned.

The project saw consistent progress in commissioning its units over the past several months. Unit 2 was the first to achieve commercial operation on Dec 23, 2025, a milestone inaugurated virtually by Union minister of Power, Housing and Urban Affairs Manohar Lal. Unit 3 followed, commencing commercial operation on Feb 1, 2026, taking the project’s cumulative capacity to 500 MW. Unit 1 achieved commercial operation on March 20, 2026, raising the operational capacity to 750 MW, and Unit 4 was commissioned with effect from midnight of May 8, 2026, bringing the total to 1,000 MW.Most recently, NHPC completed the boxing-up of Unit 5 on June 14, 2026, in the presence of CMD Bhupender Gupta, marking another step towards the project’s full completion. The commissioning of Unit 5 is expected to add a further 250 MW, taking the operational capacity to 1,250 MW.NHPC stated that the remaining four units are scheduled to be commissioned in phases by the end of 2026.