Power flows from Kudankulam N-power plant into Southern grid

Power flowed from the first unit of the 2x1000 MW Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project for the first time, at about 2.45 am on Tuesday, and the 160 MW of electricity generated by the plant was fed into the southern grid.

The Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd, which operates the plant, said the atomic reactor worked normally and that power generation was stopped after two hours as part of standard testing procedures.

The Department of Atomic Energy said the plant has been shut down for planned checks and strainer clean-up after two hours of operation.

Initially, the first unit of the 2X1000 MW power plant generated 160 MW of electricity, which was fed into the southern grid, The unit will be synchronised to the grid with about 400 MW power within an expected period of 30-45 days from criticality.

Subsequently, power generation will be increased in steps to 50 per cent, 75 per cent, 90 per cent and 100 per cent.

Full power generation will start after obtaining necessary regulatory clearances.

''The first unit of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP) is synchronized to the grid on 22.10.2013 at 0245 hours, generating 160 MWe. The power will be further raised to 500 MWe, 750 MWe and 1000 MWe in stages,'' plant site director RS Sundar said in a statement.

''At every stage, various tests are conducted and the technical parameters are verified. Based on the results of the tests at each of the stages and with AERB clearances, subsequent stages are reached.'' Once the unit goes into full generation, power-starved southern states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Puducherry can hope to get some relief from long power cuts.

With the addition of KKNPP Unit-1 of 1000 MWe capacity, nuclear power generation in the country will increase from 4780 MWe to 5780 MW, he said.

The second 1000 MW unit being built nearby the first unit would take power generation at the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project to 2000 mw.

Once the four new units earlier proposed are set up at Kudankulam, power generation from the site will go up to 6000 MW, taking total nuclear power generation capacity in the country to over 10000 MW.

The Kudankulam plant is the 20th nuclear power station of Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL), which is connected to national power grid.

The grid connectivity of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project coincided prime minister Manmohan Singh's official visit to Russia, which is supplying the nuclear power units.

"The Kudankulam nuclear power project is an important symbol of our strategic partnership. I conveyed to President Putin our commitment to fully implement the road map on civil nuclear cooperation that was signed during his visit to India in 2010. We have directed our officials to resolve all outstanding issues at the earliest," Manmohan Singh said.

India and Russia, however, could not reach a deal on the purchase of two more reactors for the plant, due mainly to the liability clause in case of accidents.

At home, however, project-affected locals and activists have been agitating for the last two years against the plant, demanding its closure.

The People's Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE), has been spearheading the anti-Kudankulam campaign, citing the Fukushima disaster in Japan, triggered by a massive tsunami, to draw parallels about the dangers of a nuclear plant.

It has also raised various questions pertaining to the disposal of nuclear waste, besides other issues linked to the plant.