The Hindu : Additional 4,000 MW n-power in 5 years: AERB chief

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Apr 20, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Tamil Nadu

Additional 4,000 MW n-power in 5 years: AERB chief

By Our Staff Reporter

TUTICORIN April 19. With eight nuclear reactors under construction, an additional 4,000 MW nuclear power would be produced in the next five years, the chairman of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, S.P. Sukhatme, said today.

At present, the installed capacity from the operating nuclear reactors was 2,700 MW, and with the addition, the country would be producing 7,000 MW of nuclear power in the next five years, Prof. Sukhatme told the media here.

Of the eight reactors, two were at Kaiga, two at Rajasthan, two at Tarapur and two at Koodangulam. Of these, four were 220 MW Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors, two 540 MW PHWRs and two 1,000 MW Light Water Reactors.

Prof. Sukhatme said one of the reactors under construction at Tarapur would be commissioned during 2004-2005 and the second one six months later. The construction work at Tarapur was in the third stage with installation of major equipment.

The nuclear programme was expanding and India had the world's second largest nuclear power project programme in the construction stage. The Board's role was to give clearance and authorisation to these projects based on review of appropriate safety documents, he said.

As for the Koodangulam nuclear power project programme, Prof. Sukhatme said the next clearance to be given by the Board for the ongoing programme was for installation of heavy equipment.

Noting that the Board had become even stricter on safety aspects and followed an elaborate set of codes and guidelines for setting up a nuclear plant and operating it. It would monitor the plant even after it became operational. Every plant that came under the Department of Atomic Energy continuously reported to the Board regarding its safety set-up. The Board continuously revised its codes and guidelines from time to time.

Prof. Sukhatme said the Board's role was primarily to ensure that every nuclear facility, be it Nuclear Fuel Complex, Uranium Mines or Heavy Water Plants, was operated to safety standards set by it.

Of the 100,000 MW of electrical power produced in the country at present, only 2,700 MW was from nuclear plants, he said.

Later distributing the Greentech Industrial Safety Award (Gold) for 2001-2 and Greentech Environment Excellence Award (Silver) for 2001-2 to the Heavy Water Plant, Tuticorin, at a function held in the plant premises here, Prof. Sukhatme said all Heavy Water Plants in the country were performing well with respect to productivity, capacity utilisation, specific energy consumption and safety.

The Board was also preparing a document `Chemical Process Quantitative Risk Analysis' for DAE's industrial plants, he said.

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