The cost of adding four Russian-designed reactors at the Kudankulam nuclear power plant in southern India has risen by 55 per cent to Rs 1.38 trillion (Rs 1.38 tn) after construction was delayed for almost three years because of the war in Ukraine. The four reactors, each of one gigawatt (GW), were put at that figure in a written reply to parliament by the Atomic Energy Minister Jitendra Singh. The revised estimate represents an escalation compared with the figures published in 2024.\n\nFederal government data show that projected expenditure for two of the new reactors increased by 73 per cent while estimates for the remaining two rose by 40 per cent, raising concerns about the impact on tariff competitiveness. Officials indicated that such cost overruns will make electricity from the units more expensive and could complicate plans to expand nuclear output in a price-sensitive market. The ministry said that costs for building four 700-megawatt (MW) domestic reactors at Kaiga and Gorakhpur are to be revised.\n\nThe sector has faced similar pressures abroad as projects in the United States, the United Kingdom and Bangladesh experienced steep increases after delays, with the Vogtle project in Georgia delivered years late and at more than double its original budget. Analysts noted that while nuclear energy remains important for climate risk mitigation and energy security, containing costs is vital to maintain competitiveness. A senior research executive at a financial firm warned that very high costs could strengthen opposition to projects and dent their commercial case.\n\nIndia has installed two Russian GW reactors at Kudankulam and is constructing four more, with the government stating that the new units will be commissioned through March 2030 and that the first is expected to start operations in June next year. The country currently has 8.8 GW of nuclear capacity, contributing about three per cent of overall power output, and the government has opened the sector to private firms to pursue an eleven-fold expansion target by 2047. Parliament was informed that the timetable had been pushed back from earlier projections.