India, "Kudankulam" (NPP): description, history and features

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (India), whose first power unit went into commercial operation on December 31, 2013, has been under design and construction for 26 years and withstood a seven-month blockade by protesters to become the largest nuclear power plant in the country.

Record long-term construction

There are nuclear power plant projects dragging on forever, and Kudankulam, the nuclear power plant, is a prime example of one of them. So why is she given the palm? This is worth doing if only because of the number of problems that the station managed to overcome. Development of the first power unit began in 1988, but the project survived the collapse of the Soviet Union, international sanctions, endless legal hurdles, and local protests that at times turned into riots. Kudankulam is a nuclear power plant famous for being the first modern reactor built in India using foreign technology.

From 1974, when the atomic bomb was tested in the country, until 2008, India was excluded from international trade in nuclear technology under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, to which it was not a party. Tests ledto the formation of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), a multinational body comprising most of the world's nuclear powers, which was created to control the international trade in nuclear technology, both military and civilian.

Energy hunger

In the context of the ban on foreign aid, India was forced to use the achievements of domestic nuclear energy. The exceptions were two power units in Tarapur, built by General Electric in 1969, and two more CANDU in Rajasthan, the construction of which was laid in the early 1970s. Both nuclear power plants operated on uranium imported under the control of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

16 other reactors in India were developed in-house and ran on heavy water. Limited uranium reserves in the country have become a source of constant problems with the supply of fuel for local nuclear power plants. It was necessary to develop a technology for processing fuel, as well as to implement a longer-term plan to use large reserves of thorium - approximately 13% of the known deposits of this chemical element are in India.

Difficulties in the development of nuclear energy (all reactors in the country have a capacity of 202 MW or less) forced its leadership to look for ways to circumvent international sanctions. One such initiative resulted in Kudankulam.

Unlucky project

In November 1988, Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Mikhail Gorbachev signed an agreement on the turnkey construction of two nuclear power unitsin Tamil Nadu using the Soviet VVER reactor. The USSR was supposed to build a station and provide it with fuel, which would be returned after generation.

But the project ran into geopolitical hurdles as the USSR was already beginning to crack at the seams in 1988. The following year, the countries of Eastern Europe under Soviet domination secured their independence, and in 1991 the Soviet Union itself collapsed. Although the Russian Federation took over the obligations of the USSR under the agreement on the Kudankulam nuclear power plant, the economic crisis that gripped Russia in the 1990s reduced its economy by 50% between 1990 and 1995, which meant its inability to continue the project. A dispute between Russia and India over this caused further delays in the project. A renegotiation of the NSG contract in 1992 introduced further problems, as the US argued that the project did not comply with the new rules. Various Indian officials at the time referred to him as stillborn.

Second wind

But the Kudankulam nuclear power plant project in India rose from the ashes under the most unexpected circumstances. Tensions with Pakistan in 1998 led to a succession of nuclear tests that led to widespread international condemnation and sanctions.

However, within a month, Russia decided to revive the project with a new agreement signed in June 1998. The regulation for the development of the Kudankulam NPP provided for the design and construction of the Russian state companyAtomstroyexport of two 1000 MW VVER-1000 light water reactors, and the Indian company Nuclear Power Corp. (NPCI) was assigned the role of an observer of the progress of the work. The deal was valued at $2.8 billion, with Russia providing a long-term loan of Rs 64.16 billion. The new agreement also gave India the right to reprocess spent fuel if Atomstroyexport provided such an opportunity.

Quick start

Construction, carried out by the largest Indian company Larsen & Toubro, began in March 2002. Unlike similar projects by Atomstroyexport, only a few Russian engineers were present on site. Almost all work was carried out by local firms and specialists. Early indications were that the facility would be completed ahead of schedule in December 2007. Construction continued at this pace until 2004. To support it and facilitate the delivery of heavy components, a port was built nearby in early 2004, which allowed large equipment to be brought directly by barge from ships anchored nearby.

But the fast pace could not be maintained.

Many obstacles

The first problems began with delays in the delivery of equipment and components from Russia, as well as problems related to the plans provided. This caused construction to slow down, and eventually a year behind schedule. The largest construction at the first power unit was completedin 2010, and in July it began testing with the loading of fictitious fuel. Shortly thereafter, the project ran into other, more serious obstacles-literally.

Despite widespread power shortages in Tamil Nadu, opposition to the construction has begun to grow as it nears completion. The People's Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE), a coalition of local villagers and fishermen, began campaigning against the plant in 2011 following the March disaster at the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant in Japan. The coastline of Tamil Nadu was hit by the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004, raising fears of another Japanese disaster.

NPP blocking

In September, before the first refueling scheduled for autumn and start-up in December, the blocking of the construction site began. On September 22, the State Cabinet passed a resolution requiring all work to be suspended until concerns about plant safety are cleared up.

Until March next year, the protesters allowed no more than 50 workers per shift, making normal work impossible. The number of demonstrators sometimes reached several thousand people.

Launch of the first stage

The protests were undermined by an energy crisis in the state next spring, caused by a 4GW power shortage. Facing the threat of massive outages, the cabinet reversed its previous decision and called for the speedy commissioning of the Kudankulam nuclear power plant. The nuclear power plant, however, was involvedto litigation, despite a Supreme Court decision in September 2012 rejecting the nuclear fuel loading block.

At the same time, protests against the station intensified, sometimes turning violent, requiring the presence of thousands of police officers to protect the station. The lawsuit against the plant was not completed until May 2013, when the Supreme Court finally closed the case. However, delays due to protests and construction problems have added $1 billion to the cost of the project.

The first start-up of unit No. 1 took place in July 2013. Low-power tests continued over the following months, and the unit was brought to 100% power on June 9. The commercial use of the nuclear power plant began on December 21, 2014. Trained the personnel of the Kudankulam NPP (India) by Atomtechenergo.

Second gigawatt

The second power unit of the Kudankulam NPP with a capacity of 1000 MW was launched on July 10, 2016. It became the 22nd nuclear reactor in India and the second pressurized water reactor.

After that, within 45 days, the power unit began to generate 400 MW of electricity and was connected to the grid in August. Electricity generation will gradually increase to 500, 750, 900 and 1000 MW. With the addition of 1,000 MW Phase 2 to the southern grid, India's nuclear power capacity will increase from the current 5,780 MW to 6,780 MW.

According to NPCIL, the first launch took place after the system's performance was confirmed to meet all criteria and requirements under the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) laws and regulations.

NPCILassures that Kudankulam is a nuclear power plant, which is distinguished by advanced safety features that comply with current international standards. Generation III+ reactors combine active and passive safety systems such as passive heat rejection, hydrogen recombiners, core traps, hydraulic accumulators and fast boron injection systems.

Misty prospects

Kudankulam NPP, the commissioning of the second stage of which is scheduled for early 2017, subject to continued cooperation between India and Russia, can be expanded to 6-8 power units. It is planned to build 20 such reactors throughout the country.

The agreement for Units 3 and 4 was signed in April 2014 for Rs 330 billion ($5.5 billion). It was delayed due to non-compliance with the Nuclear Civil Liability Act of 2010, which gives the NPCI the right to seek compensation from the nuclear power plant supplier in the event of an accident caused by faulty equipment.

This potential liability has frustrated foreign companies trying to do business in India, despite a 2008 deal with the NSG that opened the country to international nuclear trade.

Compromise solution

Negotiations between India and Russia's Rosatom, which lasted four years, have prepared a framework to continue the deal. So far, Russia is the only country that has reached an agreement according to whichIndian state insurance company General Insurance Co. evaluate each component of the reactors and charge 20-year insurance premiums to cover potential damage. The cost of new units is meant to reflect this new approach.

Observers are unsure if these ambitious plans will come to fruition as issues unique to the Indian government and judiciary arise and policies could delay the widespread deployment of nuclear technology. Nevertheless, the success of the Kudankulam nuclear power plant is reason for optimism in a country whose energy sector is in dire need of nuclear power.