Kudankulam nuclear park may have eight Russian reactors

Tirunelveli: Russia and India are in discussions for the construction of as many as six additional nuclear reactors of Russian design at the nuclear park at Kudankulam, according to visiting Russian deputy prime minster, SS Sobyanin. Located in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, the park already has two reactors in an advanced stage of completion, the first of which is expected to go critical by March next year.

Photo: IAEA

Civil work on the first and second reactors, of 1,000MW capacity each, is nearing completion with the first reactor expected to attain criticality next year.

Sobyanin led a ten-member Russian delegation to the Kudankulam nuclear power project for on-site inspection. He was accompanied by SK Jain, chairman and managing director of the Nuclear Power Corporation of India, and other officials.

Speaking to reporters, Sobyanin said that negotiations for the third and fourth reactors at the park was nearing completion and the first pour of concrete for the third reactor would begin next year.

He also revealed that discussions were on for installation of an additional four reactors at Kudankulam - numbers five to eight - and if finalised, they would be installed at the rate of one a year.

Sobyanin said the reactors were very safe and based on the latest third generation technologies "adhering to the best safety standards".