{"id":1753,"date":"2025-04-19T09:45:05","date_gmt":"2025-04-19T09:45:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/duggarsamvad.in\/?p=1753"},"modified":"2025-04-19T09:45:07","modified_gmt":"2025-04-19T09:45:07","slug":"indias-first-fast-breeder-reactor-to-be-commissioned-by-2026-a-major-milestone-in-nuclear-power-development","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/duggarsamvad.in\/?p=1753","title":{"rendered":"India\u2019s First Fast Breeder Reactor to be Commissioned by 2026: A Major Milestone in Nuclear Power Development"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

India\u2019s ambitious three-stage nuclear energy programme is set to reach a key milestone as the country\u2019s first Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR)<\/strong>, under construction at Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu<\/strong>, is expected to be commissioned by 2026<\/strong>, officials from the Department of Atomic Energy have confirmed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 500 MW PFBR<\/strong>, developed by Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Limited (BHAVINI)<\/strong>, has entered the advanced stage of integrated commissioning. The reactor is likely to achieve its first criticality<\/strong>\u2014a crucial step in nuclear activation\u2014by 2025-26<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This development marks the second stage<\/strong> of India\u2019s nuclear roadmap, which envisions an energy-secure future through the recycling of spent nuclear fuel<\/strong>. The PFBR is unique\u2014it uses plutonium-based mixed oxide fuel<\/strong> and liquid sodium<\/strong> as a coolant. It is also designed to utilise the spent fuel from Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs)<\/strong>, which currently form the backbone of India\u2019s nuclear infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the country\u2019s operating nuclear plants fall under the purview of the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL)<\/strong>, BHAVINI is solely responsible for developing fast breeder technology in India.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi<\/strong> witnessed the commencement of core loading<\/strong> at the PFBR. In July 2023, the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB)<\/strong> granted clearance for fuel loading, initial criticality operations, and low-power physics experiments at the reactor site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fast Breeder Reactors (FBRs) are a critical component of India\u2019s long-term nuclear vision. They will eventually feed into the third stage of the programme, which involves thorium-based reactors<\/strong>, exploiting India\u2019s vast thorium reserves to generate sustainable and clean energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

India\u2019s Expanding Nuclear Ambitions<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

India currently has an installed nuclear power capacity of 8.18 GW<\/strong>. Projects totaling 7.30 GW<\/strong> are under active construction or in the commissioning phase, while another 7.00 GW<\/strong> has been sanctioned and is undergoing pre-project activities. The government aims to scale up this capacity to 22.48 GW by 2031-32<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking further ahead, NPCIL has laid out plans to add:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • 15.40 GW<\/strong> through indigenous PHWRs<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • 17.60 GW<\/strong> through Light Water Reactors (LWRs)<\/strong> in collaboration with foreign partners<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • 3.80 GW<\/strong> via BHAVINI\u2019s Fast Breeder Reactors<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Additional capacity through Small Modular Reactors (SMRs)<\/strong> and Bharat Small Reactors<\/strong>, to be developed with private sector participation<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    As part of its nuclear energy mission<\/strong>, the Indian government has set a target of 100 GW<\/strong> electricity generation from nuclear sources in the coming decades, positioning the country as a global leader in advanced nuclear technologies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    India\u2019s ambitious three-stage nuclear energy programme is set to reach a key milestone as the country\u2019s first Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR), under construction at Kalpakkam…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1754,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1753","post","has-post-thumbnail","category-national"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/duggarsamvad.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1753","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/duggarsamvad.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/duggarsamvad.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/duggarsamvad.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/duggarsamvad.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1753"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/duggarsamvad.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1753\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1755,"href":"https:\/\/duggarsamvad.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1753\/revisions\/1755"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/duggarsamvad.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1754"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/duggarsamvad.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1753"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/duggarsamvad.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1753"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/duggarsamvad.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1753"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}