ISAS Special Reports

Nuclear power supplied 4,340 MW (2.8%) out of 1,57,230 MW of India's electricity in 2009-10 as on 31 January 2010, and this will increase steadily as imported uranium becomes available and new plants come on line. Some 300 reactor-years of operation had been achieved by mid 2009. India's fuel situation, with shortage of fossil fuels, is driving the nuclear investment for electricity. Since 2004, the target for nuclear power has been to provide 20 GW by 2020. In 2007, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh referred to this as "modest" and capable of being "doubled with the opening up of international cooperation." However, it is evident that even the 20 GW target will require substantial uranium imports. Late in 2008, the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) projected 22 GW on line by 2015, and the government was talking about having 50 GW of nuclear power operating by 2050. In June 2009, the NPCIL said it aimed for 63 GW nuclear by 2032, including 40 GW of Pressurised Water Reactor (PWR) capacity and 7 GW of new Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) capacity, all fuelled by imported uranium.