Private Sector to Financially Assist NPCIL in its Latest Nuclear Venture

In a significant first, the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd. (NPCIL) will begin operating 220 MW capacity small nuclear reactors for private entities, where the private sector will provide both funding and land for the projects. According to a senior government official, this development is expected to take place by the end of this year or early 2025. The private entities involved will supply the necessary financial backing and land, but the operations of the nuclear plants will be managed by NPCIL.

Because NPCIL, a public sector enterprise under the Department of Atomic Energy, will be in charge of managing and operating the plants, there will be no need to amend the Atomic Energy Act. This is important since the Atomic Energy Act limits the nuclear energy sector in India to government Public Sector Units (PSUs), thereby prohibiting private players from directly entering the sector.

These small 220 MW reactors, to be named 'Bharat Small Reactors', are currently under research at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC). The reactors are likely to utilize Pressurized Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) technology, a technology India has developed expertise in over the years. One of the key advantages of these smaller reactors is a reduced exclusion zone—down from the current range of 1 to 1.5 kilometers to just 500 meters.

The initiative's primary focus will be on energy-intensive industries such as steel, which often rely on captive power plants. In the future, small reactors could potentially replace these captive plants, offering a more efficient and cleaner energy solution.

Earlier this year, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman mentioned during the Union Budget presentation that the government would collaborate with the private sector to develop Bharat Small Reactors and conduct research on small modular reactors. However, no further details were provided at the time. Although foreign companies have expressed interest in building smaller reactors in India, the pricing proposed by these players has been prohibitively high, according to officials.

This development signals a new phase for India's nuclear energy sector, potentially broadening its scope through private sector involvement while leveraging NPCIL’s operational expertise.