N energy: Govt to push for JVs in light water reactor projects

To meet the high cost of Light Water Reactors, the government has decided to bring in such projects, which currently involve foreign collaborators, as joint ventures (JVs)with public sector undertakings (PSUs). This will also allow the Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) to focus on financing Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs) that are coming up in the country.

NPCIL is a PSU under the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) that builds and operates nuclear power reactors in the country. It is currently in talks with two other PSUs, the Indian Oil Corporation and National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) for JVs.

The government has recently amended the Atomic Energy Act 1962 to enable such JVs with PSUs. “It has been decided to push future LWR projects for JVs.

However, it will not be extended to Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs) which the NPCIL is currently building and we will be managing the equity on our own,” said a senior NPCIL official.

The primary reason for such JVs is that the LWRs not only involve high cost, but also require the much needed equity.

The PHWR have less capacity and are less expensive in comparison to LWRs. More importantly, the PHWRs are indigenous.

The official, however, added that the JVs will take place if both the parties agree to go for it. Also, the LWRs Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant unit 5 and 6 will not come under the purview of this new JVs as negotiations for getting soft loans for these reactors are already on.

However, it could be applied for the future LWR projects.

“We are currently in negotiations with banks for getting 70 per cent of funding in the form of debt financing while 30 per cent of the equity will come from JVs,” the official added.