NPCIL, France’s Areva sign pre-engineering agreement for Jaitapur N-power project

Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) has entered into a pre-engineering agreement with Areva of France for setting up two EPR (Evolutional Pressurised Reactor) rectors of 1,650 MWe each for the proposed Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project.

NPCIL, a public sector undertaking under the Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India, is the implementing agency for the nuclear power project being set up in jaitapur, in Western Maharashtra, under French collaboration.

Under the pre-engineering agreement, the two countries will assess matters pertaining to licenseability of the EPR project as per Indian laws, codes, guides, regulations, manuals, practices and general acceptability, as well as an informed understanding of the EPR technology itself.

The PEA will enable NPCIL to obtain details of the EPR technology, make a detailed safety assessment of the plant and take up the licensing process with Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB), as soon as the Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project is taken up for implementation, a release by the Department of Atomic Energy said on Sunday.

The PEA will also explore the most efficient and cost-effective pathways for project implementation, and try to maximise the scope of localisation of different components of the power plant, with a view to not only make the project economical, but also enhance India's domestic capabilities in line with the campaign for ''Make in India'', the release said.

These are preparatory steps that are necessary whenever the Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project is taken up as these would save time and cost in the implementation of the project, the release added.

EPR is an advanced light water reactor (LWR) technology and a better understanding of the technology will also help NPCIL augment its capability in the LWR domain.

Areva has already signed an agreement with Indian engineering major Larsen & Toubro for cooperation to maximise localisation for the EPR nuclear reactors in India. The collaboration, through transfer of technology, is expected to facilitate manufacturing in India of many critical components for the proposed Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project, which otherwise are either not accessible to India or would have to be imported. The collaboration is expected to have a multiplier effect in enhancing India's manufacturing capabilities with cutting edge technology, the release added.