GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH) has signed agreements with two state-owned Indian companies to collaborate on building Advanced Boiling Water Reactors (ABWRs) in India. This will help towards meeting the country’s ambitious goal to produce 60GWe from nuclear power by 2032.
Memoranda of understanding (MoU) have been signed with India’s nuclear operator Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) and Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), the country’s leading manufacturer and supplier of power generation equipment and components.
Under the preliminary agreements, GEH will begin planning with NPCIL and BHEL for the necessary resources in manufacturing and construction management for a potential multiple-unit ABWR power station. The 1350MWe ABWR design is already operating in Japan at Kashiwazaki Kariwa 6 & 7, which started up in 1996 and 1997, Shika 2 and Hamaoka 5. Four additional units are under construction today: two at Lungmen in Taiwan and Oma 1 and Shimane 3 in Japan.
GEH has a long-standing relationship with India. During the 1960s General Electric Company (GE) built India’s first nuclear plant, the Tarapur 1 & 2 boiling water reactor (BWR) station.
The MoUs were signed following a recent US nuclear industry trade delegation to India. Today’s announcement follows NPCIL’s deals with Areva, TVEL of Russia and NTPC of India made in February.
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