Nuclear Deal operationalised

In the first commercial deal after acquiring a “clean’’ waiver from the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) last year for nuclear trade, India on Wednesday signed an MoU with French company Areva for the supply of six new-generation evolutionary power reactors (EPRs). As per the deal signed by Areva and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL), Areva will supply two EPRs of 1,650 MW each for nuclear plants the French company will build at Jaitapur in Maharashtra. The order can be updated to six later. The EPRs, which are designed to phase out old reactors all over the world, are currently under construction only in France, Finland and China. Four independent cooling systems for safety and leak-proof design are some of the features which separate the EPRs from the older reactors. The MoU for building plants was signed by S K Jain, CMD of NPCIL, and Anne Lauvergeon, CEO of Areva. “This is just the beginning,’’ said Anil Kakodkar, AEC chairman. Lauvergeon said Areva was committed to supply fuel for the lifetime of the reactors, which stands at 60 years. She said Areva would meet fuel requirements through its uranium mines located in countries like Australia, Kazakhstan and Niger. All the reactors will be located in a nuclear park Areva has been tasked to develop at Jaitapur. The cost of one EPR is said to be between $5.2 billion and $7.8 billion. In December, India had signed a contract with Areva for the import of 300 tonnes of uranium. This is the first commercial pact for the supply of nuclear reactors after the NSG nod.