After the space sector, India opened its last border, nuclear energy, to private investments with an immediate market potential worth $ 125 billion.
Gradually, private and foreign capital will be channeled to replace electric power plants with coal strongly polluted by a fleet of nuclear reactors and thus decarbonisy its economy.
To start, 50 small heavy pressure reactors under pressure with capabilities of 220 MW each will be aligned with an investment of $ 26 billion. The heavy polluting industries such as steel, aluminum and metals will come from their electricity from these “benign” nuclear reactors according to the plans.
Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd., belonging to the State, will associate with private investors and electricity developers to create these small reactors. An offer inviting private participation and investments in this hitherto very limited area has been launched. The proposals should be received by March 31.
The Minister of Finance, Nirmala Sitharaman, announced that the government intended to open nuclear energy to private investors in its federal budgetary declaration a few months ago.
The Babha atomic research center managed by the Government of India has designed these small modular nuclear reactors to replace the coal units while the country presents itself to help make programs of zero targeted.
Government representatives have disclosed that the nuclear energy sector powered by private capital, technology and market expansion will help India 9180 MW lean or only two percent of India’s power capacities.
The reports suggest that the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was about to win simultaneous agreements with the best energy companies such as Reliance Industries, Tata Power, Adani Power and Vedanta for the nuclear energy of 11,000 MW.
“Foreign capital from private companies are what the government is currently considering a firm option as a precursor of the world entry of nuclear energy actors,” said a private director of the veteran company.
In recent years, discussions with companies like General Electric and Westinghouse to set up production units for nuclear reactors have not advanced much.