India is on the cusp of a nuclear energy resurgence as it jostles to scale up its nuclear power generation capacity. In the last 7 years, the installed nuclear power capacity has grown from 4780MW in 2014 to 6780MW by 2021 increase of over 40%. Similarly, commercial generation of electricity from nuclear source has increased during last two decades. On progressive completion of the reactors under construction, the nuclear power generation capacity is expected to reach 22480MW by 2031, catering 6-9% of India’s immediate electricity requirements with comparable tariffs vis-à-vis those of contemporary base-load generating plants of other technologies. If this pace is maintained, nuclear energy can be part of the achievement pathways towards India’s target to reduce Emissions Intensity of its GDP by 45 percent by 2030.
Until last year, nuclear energy debate in India was framed within the prism of economic growth and energy security. With Prime Minister Modi’s promise to achieve net zero emission by 2070 at the COP26 Summit in Glasgow in 2021, India’s nuclear energy sector seems to have acquired its rightful place in the domestic debate over climate change goals and promotion of clean energy. More importantly, the government seems committed to grow nuclear power energy capacity with a concerted strategy to diversify the energy basket while aligning with India’s climate change goals. To give boost to nuclear power generation, the government has brought necessary amendments to the existing legal framework, allowed new industrial players to have joint ventures with NPCIL, and approved new reactor construction in fleet mode besides accelerated domestic uranium production and import from external partners.
As a formidable step towards planned expansion of nuclear energy sector, the Atomic Energy Act 1962, which limited nuclear activities exclusively to the Government PSU, was amended in 2015 to enable the licensing of NPCIL joint ventures for setting up nuclear projects. “To boost domestic investment”, to meet large equity requirements in the nuclear sector, joint ventures have been formed by NPCIL with public sector majors like National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) and Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (IOCL). Indian Railways, ONGC, and NALCO Power Ltd. are other entities which might step into nuclear sector in future.
So far, three joint ventures companies – Anushakti Vidhyut Nigam Limited (NPCIL-NTPC Ltd.), NPCIL-Indian Oil Nuclear Energy Corporation Ltd. (NPCIL-IOCL) and NPCIL-Nalco Power Company Ltd. (NPCIL-NALCO) have been incorporated. Exploratory discussions have also been held with other public sector companies and Indian Railways in this regard. It is projected that NTPC, having 49 per cent equity share capital, would infuse up to Rs 1,000 crore investment and set up nuclear plants up to at least 2,000MW. NTPC is planning to make its debut in the nuclear sector by constructing two reactors (700MW) in Gorakhpur (Haryana), and subsequently another two reactors in Madhya Pradesh.
Currently, 22 reactors with total capacity of 6780MW are in operation in India; 10 reactors, totaling to 8000MW, are at various stages of construction. Meanwhile, the government has accorded administrative approval and financial sanction for 10 more reactors to be set up in fleet mode whose pre-project activities have commenced, which will add 7000MW. It is expected that by 2031, nuclear power generation in India will triple (22,480MW) from the current level, which is highest in the world after China.
To ensure uninterrupted reactor operation, the government has made necessary arrangements to supply adequate quantity of fuel from both domestic and imported sources. The government has accelerated domestic uranium exploration and production process as the current production of uranium is not adequate to meet the annual fuel requirement of uranium-based reactors. the Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research (AMD) is carrying out integrated and ‘multi-disciplinary field exploration’ “employing world’s latest technology for airborne geophysical surveys” in around a dozen states in India to accelerate domestic uranium production.
Meanwhile, uranium for Boiling Water Reactors (BWRs) and VVERs are met from the imports from Russia. during 2022-23 financial year, 133 fuel assemblies are scheduled to be imported besides 100 MTU of natural uranium import during the same period. India has “entered into uranium purchase agreement with Russia, Canada, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.” A strategic reserves of imported natural uranium is maintained at Nuclear Fuel Complex (NFC) for enabling uninterrupted supply of fuel to reactors under IAEA safeguards. Today all Indian nuclear reactors are running with maximum capacity factor. The all-weathered India-Russia nuclear energy partnership, especially Rosatom’s uninterrupted joint ventures, kept India’s nuclear energy sector upbeat despite all odds. In addition, the Indo-US civil nuclear deal unshackled India of the multilateral non-proliferation regimes and facilitated Indian nuclear establishment to augment reactor capacity with imported nuclear fuel. In December 2018, Unit 1 (indigenous PHWR) of Kaiga Generating Station achieved a world record feat in continuous operation of nuclear power reactors by clocking 962 days of non-stop run with a capacity factor of 99.3%.
With the availability of adequate nuclear fuel and clear political mandates, the Indian nuclear sector is on the course of resurgence. There is no looking back in India’s nuclear energy journey, especially under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership.
FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
Disclaimer
Views expressed above are the author’s own.
Comments are closed.