India's installed capacity of nuclear energy, which at present stands at 8.18 gigawatts is set to increase to 13 GW by financial year 2029-30, said Jitendra Singh, the minister of state of the Prime Minister's Office.
Singh, while informing this to the Rajya Sabha during the Question Hour, also added that once all sanctioned projects are completed by 2032, the capacity of nuclear energy will rise to 22.5 GW.
According to Singh, a key highlight of the Union Budget 2025-26 is the launch of a Nuclear Energy Mission, which is focused on research and development of small modular reactors. The government has allocated Rs 20,000 crore for this initiative.
The government has set an ambitious target of 100 GW nuclear power capacity by 2047, positioning nuclear energy as a major pillar in India's energy mix.
Singh stated that nuclear energy is expected to serve many purposes beyond just providing electricity to the national grid. These include captive power and process heat for industry, electricity and fresh water (through seawater nuclear desalination) in remote areas, and clean hydrogen for difficult-to-decarbonise sectors.
PPP Model
On inclusion of private players in the nuclear sector, Singh said that India will mostly take the public-private participation route, especially while manufacturing small modular reactors.
According to Singh, allowing private participation into nuclear sector is expected to gear up a rapid scale-up of nuclear capacity, for which legislative changes are being pursued.
National Goals
Beyond 2030, Singh said, there are two national goals for the country—‘Energy Independence by 2047' and ‘Net Zero by 2070'.
The optimum energy mix for the future needs to leverage all available energy sources to ensure quality and reliable electricity for nation's energy security at a minimum cost to the consumer.
—With PTI inputs
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