File image of the fast reactor in Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu | Image source: Hindu
Officials said India’s first prototype rapid reactor in Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu, is expected to be commissioned next year, nearly two years after the nuclear regulator was granted.
The commissioning of the prototype rapid breeding reactor (PFBR) will mark the second phase of India’s three-phase nuclear program, which aims to recycle spent fuel to reduce inventory of radioactive waste.
The PFBR developed in Kalpakkam is the first nuclear reactor that uses p-based mixed oxides as fuel and liquid sodium as coolant. It will also utilize the depleted fuel of the pressurized heavy water reactor, the pillar of India’s nuclear power at present.
The State-owned Nuclear Power Company Ltd. of India (NPCIL) operates nuclear power plants in the country, while Kalpakkam’s PFBR was developed by Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam (Bhavini).
Atomic Energy Officials recently told the Parliamentary Science and Technology Standing Committee: “Bhavini’s 500 MW PFBR is in the advanced stage of integrated commissioning and is expected to be in 2025-26.”
They told the committee that the first criticality of the PFBR is expected to be achieved in March, and the plant will be completed in September 2026.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi witnessed the start of the nuclear reactor core load in March last year.
Last July, the Atomic Energy Regulatory Commission (AERB) allowed the loading of fuel, first to perform critical and conduct low-power physics experiments for PFBR.
The PFBR is crucial to India’s nuclear program, as the time-consuming fuel of these reactors will be used to power the or-based reactors that constitute the third phase of the closed fuel cycle.
The government has announced a nuclear energy mission aimed at producing 100 GW of electricity from nuclear power.
Currently, India has installed nuclear power capacity of 8.18 GW. There is also a 7.30 GW nuclear project under construction or commissioning, and 7.00 GW has been approved and pre-project activities are currently underway.
After these projects are completed, India’s nuclear power capacity is expected to reach 22.48 GW by 2031-32.
In addition, NPCIL plans to increase 17.60 GW of freshwater reactors and foreign cooperation with 15.40 GW, bringing the total installation capacity to 55 GW.
In addition, Bhavini is expected to contribute 3.80 gw through the rapid breeding reactor, while the remaining capacity will come from small modular reactors, Bharat small reactors, and other advanced nuclear technologies developed through collaborative private sector.
publishing – April 19, 2025 04:42 pm ist
