Chennai: India has already received natural uranium in the form of pellets from Russia and as yellowcake from areva of France for use in its safeguarded reactors, according to S.K. Jain, Chairman and managing director, nuclear power Corporation of India limited (NPCIL)
This is consequent to the nuclear suppliers group relaxing its guidelines last year to allow its member-countries to have nuclear trade with India. Subsequently, in dia signed agreements with Russia and France for importing nuclear power reactors and fuel.
Mr. Jain said on Tuesday that India had also received clearance from the international atomic energy agency (IAEA) for the fabrication of this imported fuel into fuel rods. The process was now underway at the nuclear fuel complex (NFC), Hyderabad. “I am happy to share with you that I flagged off on Saturday (July 11) the first consignment of fabricated fuel from the NFC for use in the second unit (already under safeguards) of the Rajasthan atomic power station (RAPS),” Mr.Jain said.
The entire initial core of natural uranium fuel for RAPS-2 would be available in august. The reactor, which has a capacity of 200 MWe, would start generating full power in September/October. if the current fuel fabrication plans of the NFC were achieved, enough fuel would be available for the two new units of RAPS-5 and 6 to be commissioned and they would start operating at full capacity by 2009-end, Mr.Jain said. RAPS-5 and 6 have a capacity of 220 MWe each. Since RAPS-5 and 6 would come under the IAEA safeguards as per India’s separation plan, the two reactors would become eligible to receive imports fuel. However, clearance from the IAEA should be obtained before the imported fuel was fed into the two reactors.
Mr. Jain said the NPCIL had “come out of the bad dream” of shortage of natural uranium fuel supply to power its indigenous pressurized heavy water peactors (PHERs). “The turnaround is taking place and we want to march ahead,” he said. The supply of indigenous natural uranium fuel had gone up with the mine and mill at turamdih in jharkhand adding to the supply from the mill at the nearby Jaduguda. This had led to the PHWRs operating between 60 percent and 65 percent capacity factor compared to less than 50 percent earlier.
“I plan to take them to 70 percent,” Mr.Jain said. The four reactors at kaiga in Karnataka would reach criticality in six to eight months with the increased flow of indigenous natural uranium.
