Nuclear power stations will be built by PSUs: Jitendra Singh

In order to reach its objective of net zero emissions by 2070, India is prepared to enlist the help of its public sector behemoths for the construction of nuclear power plants, according to Union Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh, who made the announcement. Speaking to the media on the sidelines of the 108th Indian Science Congress, Singh said that in order to raise money for the construction of atomic power facilities, the nuclear industry has been opened up for joint ventures with PSUs.

Singh oversees the Department of Atomic Energy as the Union Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office. In order to allow joint ventures between the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and public sector enterprises to construct nuclear power projects, the government revised the Atomic Energy Act in 2015. In reference to the development of a nuclear power station in Gorakhpur, Haryana, Singh stated, “We are now building nuclear power plants in the northern portions of the country as well.” To increase the role of atomic power in the nation's energy mix, the government approved the construction of 10 nuclear power units with a combined capacity of 700 MW in 2017.

In order to expand the nuclear power industry, the NPCIL, which manages the majority of the nation's nuclear power reactors, has developed joint ventures with National Thermal Power Corporation, Indian Oil Nuclear Energy, and Nalco Power Company Limited. India currently has 6,780 MW of nuclear power installed, and by 2031, it expects to construct 21 more nuclear power generating units, bringing the total installed capacity to 15,700 MW.