Speaking at the 62nd General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) hosted by Austria on September 19, the outgoing Atomic Energy Department Secretary Dr. Sekhar Basu recounted India’s progress in the nuclear energy sector.
Key highlights of Basu’s speech:
Basu said, “During the last general conference we talked about our plans to build 21 reactors by 2030…implementation of this program is well on track with foreign partners bringing in different technologies. We have signed the industrial-way-forward agreement between Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited and EDF of France in March for the establishment of six nuclear power reactors with EPR technology.”
“We have placed two Russian-designed pressurized light water reactors, and the two pressurized heavy reactors which are being built with Indian technology under IAEA safeguards. In all, 26 Indian nuclear facilities are now under IAEA safeguards,” he added. (The in-house developed prototype fast breeder reactor of 500 MWe is undergoing sodium commissioning and criticality is expected next year.)
India’s Department of Atomic Energy signed an agreement with the Department of Natural Resources of Canada on science and technology and innovation; and another with VINATOM of Vietnam on training and capacity building. In April, when Rick Perry, the U.S. Secretary of Energy, visited India an inter-governmental collaboration was finalized with Fermilab in the field of Neutrino Physics.
