Nuclear Power
Recently, Prime Minister Modi and President Trump encouraged the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited and Westinghouse Electric Company to finalise the techno-commercial offer for the construction of six nuclear reactors in India at the earliest date.
Concerns –
- It has been clear for years that electricity from American reactors would be more expensive than competing sources of energy.
- Nuclear reactors can undergo serious accidents, as shown by the 2011 Fukushima disaster.
- The six reactors being offered to India by Westinghouse would cost almost ₹6 lakh crore. If India purchases these reactors, the economic burden will fall upon consumers and taxpayers.
- It is estimated that even after reducing these prices by 30%, to account for lower construction costs in India, the first year tariff for electricity would be about ₹25 per unit.
- Nuclear power can also impose long-term costs. Large areas continue to be contaminated with radioactive materials from the 1986 Chernobyl accident and thousands of square kilometres remain closed off for human inhabitation.
- After the Fukushima accident in 2011, the company paid nothing towards clean-up costs, or as compensation to the victims, due to an indemnity clause in Japanese law. Westinghouse wants a similar arrangement with India.
India’s experience –
- Starting with the Tarapur 1 and 2 reactors, in Maharashtra, India’s experiences with imported reactors have been poor.
- The Kudankulam 1 and 2 reactors, in Tamil Nadu, the only ones to have been imported and commissioned in the last decade, have been repeatedly shut down. In 2018-19, these reactors produced just 32% and 38%, respectively, of the electricity they were designed to produce.
Conclusion –
India should consider all such options before exploring the need to set up nuclear power plants in India imported from the United States.
Source – The Hindu
QUESTION – A certain section of nuclear disarmament activists are against the Indo-US nuclear deal. Examine the veracity of their arguments and share the Indian experience with nuclear power projects.
