Mumbai, Aug 18 (IANS) The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) Wednesday granted clearance for the proposed Rajasthan Atomic Power Station Units 7 and 8, a top official said here.
The two new reactors are scheduled to come up at the Rawatbhata Nuclear Power site in Rajasthan where six reactors of 1,180 MW are functioning, Nuclear Power Corp of India Ltd Executive Director Sudhinder Thakur said.
‘We plan to complete Units 7 and 8 around 2017 at the Rawatbhata site. After that, the problems of power shortage in the state (Rajasthan) shall become history,’ Thakur told IANS.
Already, Rajasthan’s share of nuclear power generation, currently at 19 percent, is the highest in the country.
Thakur attributed the development to the decision of the Nuclear Suppliers Group to go for international nuclear commerce with India.
He added that since September 2009, there had been improvement in nuclear power generation in Rajasthan.
‘For instance, the RAPS Unit 2 has been in operation at full power from Sep 1, 2009. Units 5 and 6 have commenced commercial operation from February-March 2010 respectively and Units 3 and 4, which operated at about 60 percent power, now operate at full power. Rajasthan is amongst the states with the least power shortages,’ Thakur pointed out.
Unit 3 has operated continuously, without interruptions, for more than 400 days at a stretch, from June 26, 2009 to Aug 5, 2010.
This, typical of nuclear power, outperforms any contemporary fossil fuel operations, he said.
While the power of Unit 2 is fully allocated to Rajasthan, all beneficiaries of the Northern Electricity Region share power from the other units.
Incidentally, with 1,180 MW, Rajasthan follows Maharashtra, which has a capacity of 1,400 MW, but uses indigenous fuel for nuclear plants, Thakur said.
