India’s Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL)said on 9 July it had won a major order for the supply of 12 steam generators from Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) against stiff competitive bidding. The order, valued at more than INR 14 billion ($188m), was awarded under NPCIL’s Fleet Mode procurement programme and mandates supply of 12 steam generators for India’s indigenously-developed 700MWe pressurised heavy water reactors (PHWR)s being built at four different locations.
The steam generators will be manufactured at BHEL’s Tiruchirapalli plant. This is the second major supply order secured by BHEL through competitive bidding for the Fleet Mode implementation programme of 10 700MWe Nuclear projects for NPCIL. The first order for the supply of 32 reactor header assemblies is currently under execution. BHEL is the only Indian company to be associated with all three stages of the Indigenous Nuclear Power Programme and has emerged as the leading partner for NPCIL over the past four decades. Some 75% of PHWR-based NPPs in India are equipped with BHEL-supplied turbine and generator sets (the balance being imports).
BHEL has also emerged as the "L-1 bidder" in another INR108 billion tender by NPCIL for turbine island packages for six 700 MWe PHWRs. "With this the company has reinstated its supremacy and reaffirmed its position of being the lone domestic supplier for nuclear steam turbines in the country," BHEL said.
BHEL has also emerged as the L-1 bidder in another Rs.10,800 Crore tender of NPCIL for six 700 MWe turbine island packages, reaffirming its position as India’s sole domestic supplier of nuclear steam turbines. The company says it has dedicated infrastructure and skilled manpower to address the special design, manufacturing and testing requirements complying with international codes and standards for various components/equipment for NPPs and is geared up to cater to the growing requirements in this area in the future.
In May 2017, the Indian government approved the construction of 10 700 MWe units by 2031in a "significant decision to fast-track India's domestic nuclear power programme". The reactors four plant locations include two new sites. Two of the reactors will be at units 5 and 6 of the Kaiga NPP in Karnataka state; two at units 3 and 4 of the Gorakhpur plant in Haryana state; two at units 1 and 2 of the new Chutka plant in Madhya Pradesh; and four units at the new Mahi Banswara plant in Rajasthan. India’s first indigenously-designed 700MWe PHWR - unit 3 at Kakrapar NPP in Gujarat state - achieved criticality in July 2020 and was connected to the grid in January. India has 6885MWe of installed nuclear capacity from 23 operational reactors with another 4600MWe under construction.
