Two more NPCIL reactors at Kudankulam

Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) is planning to build two more reactors at Kudankulam near Kanyakumari where the country's first lightwater reactor power plant is coming up.

The project director for the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNP), S C Purohit said, "The site can accommodate six reactors but for now, we have approval for two more reactors (in addition to the original two being built)." Public hearings for environmental clearances for the new reactors are slated to begin in January 2007.

The first of the two under-construction 1000 MW reactor is expected to be ready by December 2007, with the plant expected to start producing electricity by March 2008, Purohit said.

"We will now begin erecting critical equipment like the reactor pressure vessel and the turbine blades," Purohit said. Around 50 per cent of the power produced will be supplied to Tamil Nadu.

Most of the critical reactor components such as the pressure vessel, reactor coolant pipelines, reactor coolant pumps casings for Unit 1, have all been delivered to the site. The second phase of the project will be ready a year later, Purohit added.

The Rs 13,000 crore project is a 50 per cent joint venture with Russia's Atomstroyexport Russian Representation. Atomstroy has supplied the design and equipment for the project. It will also supply the enriched uranium fuel for the plant.

Purohit, however, did not comment on whether the Russians will also supply the design and the equipment for the two proposed reactors.

Lightwater technology, unlike the heavywater technology which uses natural uranium, uses enriched uranium as fuel.

Enriched uranium has 4 per cent fissile material compared to the 0.7 per cent in natural uranium and such is considered a more efficient fuel. Russia has also sold two 1,000 mw VVER (lightwater) reactors to China. These are coming up at Tianwan.