Fuel loading at Kalpakkam reactor begins

CHENNAI: India's most complex atomic power plant -- the Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor -- moved a step forward as engineers started loading fuel into the unit, which will be the only second of its kind in the world.

The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) granted permission for loading fuel into the 500 MWe Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor being developed by the Bhartiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam (BHAVINI) at Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu.

"We faced technical problems in loading the fuel in March last year. We have solved those problems, and got the regulatory clearance to load fuel on Thursday. The work has started," Ajit Kumar Mohanty, Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission, said here.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi witnessed the core loading at the facility in March last year.

Once operationalised, the 500 MWe Fast Breeder Reactor will be only the second of its kind in the world after Russia, which operates the other fast breeder reactor of 800 MWe.

A few other countries had tried mastering the complex technology, but had given up.

The commissioning of the Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) will mark the second stage of India's three-stage nuclear programme that aims to recycle spent fuel to reduce the inventory of radioactive waste.

"Now, we expect first criticality to be achieved within six months of fuel loading. Then, we will gradually raise the power to full capacity," Mohanty said.

The PFBR being developed at Kalpakkam is the first-of-its-kind nuclear reactor to use plutonium-based mixed oxide as fuel and liquid sodium as coolant.

It will also utilise the spent fuel of Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors, which form the mainstay of nuclear power in India at present.

While the state-run Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) operates nuclear power plants in the country, the PFBR at Kalpakkam is being developed by the Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam (BHAVINI).

Last July, the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) granted permission for loading of fuel, the first approach to criticality and conducting low-power physics experiments for the PFBR.

PFBRs are critical for India's nuclear programme as the spent fuel from these reactors will be used to power the thorium-based reactors that form the third stage of the closed fuel cycle.

The government has announced a nuclear energy mission that aims to produce 100 GW electricity through nuclear power.

At present, India's installed nuclear power capacity stands at 8.18 GW. An additional 7.30 GW nuclear energy projects are under construction or commissioning, and 7.00 GW have been sanctioned and are currently undergoing pre-project activities.

Upon completion of these projects, India's nuclear power capacity is expected to reach 22.48 GW by 2031-32.

Beyond this, the NPCIL plans to add another 15.40 GW through indigenous Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors and 17.60 GW through Light Water Reactors with foreign cooperation, bringing the total installed capacity to 55 GW.

Additionally, BHAVINI is expected to contribute 3.80 GW through Fast Breeder Reactors while the remainder of the capacity will come from Small Modular Reactors, Bharat Small Reactors, and other advanced nuclear technologies developed with private sector collaboration.