ASSOCHAM - Nuclear Energy Group

4 International Conference on Nuclear Energy

De-Risking Nuclear Energy: Way Forward
13th June 2012, New Delhi
th

Draft - Recommendations
1.1

. Clear, long term, stable, sustained and irreversible policy as

well as political consensus should be established. Policy, legal &

regulatory frame works should be quickly announced & put in
place.
1.2. Liability rules should be notified & Nuclear Safety Regulatory
Authority (NSRA) Act amendment bill should be passed quickly.
2. Indian energy planning should be on four pillars namely
a. Thermal Including Gas
b. Renewable including hydro
c. Nuclear and
d. Energy intensity improvement, reduce T&D losses, improve
Energy efficiency, Energy conservation etc.
These four need to be simultaneously pursued. A country like
ours needs all sources and measures to be tapped. Nuclear
Energy is inevitable to India for more than ten reasons.
Nuclear Energy should be pursued further aggressively to
meet the energy targets due to volatility in oil prices, concerns
for

reduction

in

carbon

emissions

and

dwindling

of

conventional energy resources.

India would need 8.0 lakhs MW of installed capacity to attain a per
capita consumption of 5000Kwhrs. With this installed capacity,
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domestic coal will last for 11 years, Uranium its derivative and Thorium
for more than 200 years. Thorium can generate 358000 GWe years of
energy. Gas shortage has resulted in many plants idling. The 20000
MW of renewables are generating less electricity than the 4780MWe
Nuclear Power installed capacity as renewables can operate at 15 to
20% plant load factor as against 80 to 90% for Nuclear. If one details
out the contribution of power from all the four above pillars a gap of 70
to 80000 MWe emerges. Nuclear is the only Alternative bulk source of
Energy that can close this gap of 70 to 80000 MWe.

3. To meet the target of 63000 MWe by 2032, private sector

participation should be started by GOI. This can be done initially
by allowing minority partnership with NPCIL & later on go
gradually and cautiously to full privatization.
4. The Legal and a Regulatory frame work should be aligned with
International nuclear Regimes. This is all the more important as
India will be an exporter in future.
5. R & D programs should be taken up to develop better technology
& Generation 3+ Nuclear Reactors with in country like the way
India developed PHWRs.
One or two of the imported technologies should be selected, after a
comprehensive review, and absorbed to facilitate indigenization as well
as future exports under license.

6. R & D program should be expedited to utilize Thorium available

abundantly in the country.
Realizing that for every 1000MW(e) Thorium Reactor, 7000MWe of other
types are required to convert fertile Thorium to fissile U233, the installed
capacity of Nuclear should be increased in an accelerated manner.
7. The present model/methodology adopted in the process leading
to techno-commercial agreement with the technology players
should be modified to cut down the time presently taken to half.

8. Public acceptance program should be strengthened to address

all issues raised by public. Help from various private/public
organizations other than DAE/NPCIL can be taken.
We need to Partner with the other Stakeholders in designing and
delivering

Educational

Programs

for

creating

better

Public

awareness on Nuclear Energy Sector and it advantages for our

Nations growth. The outreach program should be strengthened.
Only Nuclear that is perceived to be not damaging Public and
environment will be acceptable to people. Legitimate doubts and
questions need to be answered. Majority have genuine worry. A small
group have made up their minds, their graphs are plotted and points
outside will be disregarded. You can wake up a person who is sleeping but
not one who is pretending to sleep.

9. Detailed, comprehensive planning should be done to ensure

adequate & timely resources required for 63000MWe target by
2032. Planning should include all three resources Men, Material
& Money. For meeting the required resources (Seven times the
present resources are required) in quantity, quality and in a
timely manner, in addition to contribution from DAE/NPCIL,
valuable contribution will be required by PSUs, private sector
and FDI also. Government may set up a committee for due
deliberation

for

FDI

and

through

consultation

with

other

agencies such as DAE, DIPP, FIPB etc.

Private Players are waiting on the wings for the last five years are more. If
full privatization takes time due to its necessity of being introduced in a
cautious manner, minority share opportunity can be commenced
immediately. Involving private players in the owner developer area (They
are playing vital role already in the manufacturing & Construction/ EPC
areas) will bring in professionalism in Project Management, Financial
Structuring and Management, Public Acceptance, Human Resource
development, Operational efficiency etc.
10.Global renaissance may offer huge opportunities for Indian
Nuclear industry. India can be a global leader as exporter of
Nuclear Power Plants & other facilities of the Nuclear Cycle, a
manufacturing hub, a human resource provider, a nuclear service
provider etc. Government should give a lead to the efforts to

make India a Global Nuclear Power Supplier in a decade from

now.
Post Fukushima Nuclear Industry will change but need for nuclear will not
change. Out of 11 countries having more than 10 reactors, Germany has
announced phase out and Japan is still to make up its mind. But the
Japanese Government wants to start two reactors (Since they have
restarted a Nuclear Plant). Remaining nine countries have announced
continuation despite Fukushima. Germany has specific reasons for phase
out. They do not have Uranium and thus no energy security from Nuclear,
they have lot of coal & lignite, their electricity growth is either zero or a
small percentage compared to 10% for India, they are able to import
Nuclear power from France etc. There is no common global formula and
each country should analyze & decide the best option for it. Emerging
Economies including Oil rich countries like UAE and Saudi Arabia would
need Nuclear and are going ahead. Thus Global Nuclear renaissance will
go on may be a little slower. Hence there is a big opportunity for India to
be a global Nuclear Player. They can export PHWRs as India makes the
cheapest Nuclear Power Plants in the world. India can be a manufacturing
hub and provider of services. In a decade or more the volume of Nuclear
Business will be much higher than what IT now.
11.This Conference opens the possibility for India to become a Exporter of
Nuclear Plant Technology and Equipments from being an Net Importer
when High Commissioner of Namibia invited Indias Nuclear Technology
and Industry in building up Nuclear Capacities in their country on the
5

basis of availability of abundant Uranium offered by there. The Former

Secretary DAE, Dr. S.K. Banerjee present there promptly offered all
Technical Support in building up the Namibian Civil Nuclear Energy
Capacity in the Future.
The informal discussions thereafter continued at Lunch.