Government committee calls for India to accelerate nuclear power projects

According to a meeting of India's Power Ministry advisory committee held on Monday, the country must speed up nuclear project execution, raise awareness about their safety, and create a strong vendor list.

Why it's important

India announced in early February that it would amend its nuclear liability laws to encourage foreign and private investment. The aim is to increase the nuclear capacity from 9 GW to 100 GW or more by 2047.

The country is looking to replace coal-based energy with more environmentally friendly sources.

CONTEXT

India has a high reliance on nuclear energy to meet its growing energy demands without compromising its net-zero pledges. It proposes to let private Indian companies build nuclear plants.

Reports earlier this month stated that the country would allow foreign companies to hold up to 49 percent of its nuclear power plants and also plans to relax its nuclear liability laws in order to limit accident-related penalties for equipment suppliers.

According to a government announcement, Manohar lal, the Power Minister, told the advisory group on Monday that India should introduce tax concessions to ensure competitive nuclear tariffs and diversify sources of uranium to speed up project execution.

By the Numbers

India generates about three-quarters of its electricity using fossil fuels.

The country operates 25 nuclear reactors with an installed capacity totaling 8,880 Megawatts (MW), which contributes about 3% of the country's electric power generation.

According to data from the government, eight reactors have a combined power of 6,600 MW, while another ten with a capacity total of 7,000MW are at pre-project stage. Sethuraman N.R. in Bengaluru, and Maju Samuel edited the article.

(source: Reuters)