| India promises nuke biz with US to push 123 deal |
|
Times of India, Mumbai edition | Sep 20, 2008 | Section:Times Nation, Page 10
New Delhi: As the Indo-US nuclear deal goes into its last lap in the US Congress, India is doing its bit to sweeten its passage.
“The Indian government has provided the US with a strong Letter of Intent, stating its intention to purchase reactors with at least 10,000 MWe worth of new power generation capacity from US firms. India has committed to devote at least two sites to US firms,” said William Burns, US undersecretary for political affairs.
Burns emphasised the cost to US firms if the Congress did not expeditiously clear the deal. Given an economic crisis in the US, this, the administration reckons, would be a powerful incentive for a quick passage. “International competition will, inevitably, be intense and we want to avoid exposing US firms to any unnecessary delays,” Burns said.
India’s preliminary negotiations was stated by the foreign ministry last week, when it said it had started talks with US, French and Russian firms on sourcing nuclear power or buying nuclear reactors.
Burns also revealed that India will adhere to the Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage. This is an internationally recognised convention and it is a prerequisite for the participation of foreign nuclear firms in India.
Making a strong case for the nuclear deal as being an attractive economic package for the US, Burns said, “This will open up trade and investment opportunities for US firms in the multi-billion dollar Indian nuclear energy sector for the first time in over three decades. Meeting India’s demand for civilian nuclear technology, fuel, and support services holds the promise of substantial new business for the American nuclear industry, which will translate into new jobs and export income for the US.”
However, Burns was equally candid that the deal would be off if India tested another nuclear weapon. “We have been asked what would happen if India conducts a nuclear test, and the short answer is that while India maintains a sovereign right to test, we most certainly maintain a sovereign right to respond,” he said. TNN India has big plans for N-power To Build ‘Nuclear Parks’ For Producing An Additional 8,000MW Energy Indrani Bagchi | TNN
New Delhi: With the nuclear deal squeezing past the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), India can finally make some realistic projections about the use of nuclear power in its energy mix. And if early indications are anything to go by, nuclear power could emerge as a major energy source in the country.
Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL), the PSU that spearheads the country’s nuclear power programme, is certainly planning big. It wants to have GE, Areva, Toshiba-Westinghouse and Rosatom build two reactors each — hoping to generate an additional 8,000 MW through these projects. NPCIL’s S P Jain has gone on record after the NSG waiver to say this was part of a $40 billion reactor-building programme. Like SEZs, there are plans to build ‘‘nuclear parks’’ solely dedicated to producing nuclear energy, he added.
To source uranium, India is likely to choose Russia as its easiest supplier, certainly till the Australians turn around. Kazakhstan is a potentially big source, as is Canada. Then there’s the private sector. An Indian company has already ventured into remote Niger for mining uranium. This small Saharan country in Africa is rich in uranium and not even a member of the NSG! China has already set a foot in the country, but India’s Taurian Resources Pvt Limited, Mumbai, a Rs 300-crore company, recently won a contract which gives it exclusive rights over 3,000 sq km of Sahara desert known to be rich in uranium deposits. According to the company’s projections, the area is likely to hold at least 30,000 tonnes of uranium. The estimate seems way too optimistic, but it’s a promising start.
All this shows that PM Manmohan Singh’s projection of the country producing 20,000 MW (or 20 GW) of nuclear power by 2020 could well be realized. In fact, the PM has said that N-power’s share could be as high as 40 GW — equivalent to a third of India’s total current generation.
The PM’s projections, based on department of atomic energy figures, factored in imported nuclear fuel but not new nuclear power plants. The projections may actually fall short of the actual numbers if you take into account the possible entry of private sector players in this sector. It’s well known that everybody from Reliance Power, Tata Power and JSW are itching to get their hands into this sunrise sector.
To be sure, India needs more power. The country’s peak time power shortfall at the moment is 14.8% of demand and the gap is expected to widen. At present, India’s total power generation stands at 124 GW. Of that, coal comprises 55%, hydroelectric 26%, natural gas 10%, renewables 5% and nuclear only 3%. The primary reason for India’s poor nuclear power production has been chronic uranium shortage, which incidentally was the main driving force for the India-US nuclear deal in the first place. According to NPCIL, India has 17 reactors in six states that produced 4,120 MW in 2007.
In addition, about 2,660 MW are under various stages of construction.
Srikumar Banerjee, head of BARC, estimates that with its domestic uranium reserves, India will be able to produce just 10 GW by 2020. In an interview he was quoted as saying, ‘‘We are building eight new 700 MW reactors and if the new mines open up, as we’ve planned, then by 2020 we will add 5,600 MW to the existing 4,120 MW.’’ India’s uranium mines are mainly in Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh — all Naxalite territory and much of it out of bounds for UCIL.
In Meghalaya — another uranium site — there are serious environmental objections. There’s been a good find in Domiasiat near the Bangladesh border, but that too is subject to security issues. Besides, the worst kept secret about Indian uranium is its poor quality — UCIL’s claims of 600 to 700 parts per million ore concentrations (0.06% to 0.07%) have been contested by independent experts who say its closer to 0.03%.
‘No leak of sensitive N-info’ Mumbai: The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) has denied reports in a certain section of the media that there has been a leak of sensitive information. Referring to reports about leaks of design information relating to centrifuge components, the dae said that sensitive technologies developed in Indian nuclear installations are controlled with adequate security systems. It says that information contained in tender documents does not compromise technology controlled requirements,it has added. TNN NUCLEAR VISION 2020 Raising expectations
PM's initial estimate was that India could generate 20,000MW of nuclear power by 2020
He has since raised the projection to 40,000MW — that is, 1/3rd of India's current total power generation of 1,24,000 MW
If deal doesn't go through
N-power generation can at best reach 10,000MW by 2020
Even this estimate, by BARC chief, is optimistic as uranium supplies remain difficult
Current N-power status
India has 17 reactors that can produce 4,120MW. But they actually generate just 40% of this because of erratic fuel supplies
At present, nuclear power accounts for just 3% of India’s total power generation. 55% of power comes from a highly pollution source, coal — the country’s biggest contributor to global warming
What's planned
With own technology, India is adding another 2,660MW of nuclear power capacity — Rawatbhata (2X220), Kaiga (200), Koondankulam (2X1000)
New generation reactors are planned for 700MW but they will come only after 2011
What can be planned
Much bigger reactors. The global norm is 1000MW reactors. India is getting two of these from Russia for Koodankulam plant because Russia agreed to supply these before it joined NSG in 1992
Assured supply of uranium. Top suppliers are expected to be Russia, Australia & Canada
NPCIL plans to add 8,000MW. It wants to place orders with GE, Areva, Toshiba-Westinghouse, Rosatom
An Indian company, Taurian Resources, has taken exclusive rights for mining in 3,000 sq km of uranium rich Niger |
