PM Modi, President Putin Discuss A Second Russian Nuclear Plant in India

India and Russia discussed expanding nuclear energy cooperation during President Vladimir Putin’s first official visit since the start of the war in Ukraine in 2022.

The two nations discussed the possibility of building a second nuclear power plant with Russian-designed reactors, with the Indian side committing to allocate a site for the project, according to a joint statement issued on Friday. 

The agreements come amid ongoing parliamentary discussions seeking reforms that would open the market to private nuclear operators, until now a monopoly of state-owned Nuclear Power Corp. of India Ltd. 

The proposed changes aim to ease the sector’s current liability regime, which exposes suppliers to damage claims and legal suits — along with the operator. While global conventions limit liability to plant operators, India’s law has stifled projects by reactor makers such as General Electric Co., Westinghouse Electric and Electricite de France.

The leaders agreed to explore the commercial and technical feasibility of Russian VVER reactors as well as increasing efforts to build equipment and fuel supply chains, according to the statement. India currently operates two Russian VVERs of 1 gigawatt each at Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu and plans to add four more such units there. 

India and Russia have been discussing a second site to set up six 1.2 gigawatts reactors since at least 2016, but talks haven’t progressed due to the current legal constraints. The Kudankulam plant is currently the only one hosting foreign reactors as it predates the rollout of the liability law. 

Earlier in the day, Putin said his country is open to collaborate with India on developing small modular reactors, a technology still in a nascent stage but seen holding promise for industrial decarbonization.