Pravir Sinha, CEO of leading Indian power company Tata Power, told shareholders that the company is advancing its plans for small modular reactors (SMRs). He said the company is in the process of preparing detailed project reports (DPRs) in collaboration with the Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) for two 220 MWe units that could be ready in six months.
During a conference call, Sinha said that the company is working with the governments of three states, where it has identified land plots for a potential nuclear project and that detailed geotechnical studies are underway. “We are currently preparing detailed project reports for the projects that will be implemented, and this will be done in cooperation with NPCIL. These are small modular reactors, two 220 MW units,” he explained.
Tata Power is a vertically integrated energy company with a diversified portfolio across the energy value chain. It has 17.5 GWe of renewable capacity operating and under construction, including solar, wind and hydropower, as well as approximately 8.9 GWe of thermal generation.
Tata is among six companies that have expressed interest as part of a request for proposals announced by NPCIL in 2024 to fund and build a planned flotilla of Bharat Small Reactors. The six companies – Hindalco Industries Ltd, Jindal Steel & Power Ltd, Tata Power Co, Reliance Industries, JSW Energy Ltd and Adani Power Ltd – have identified 16 promising sites in six states, including five in Gujarat, four in Madhya Pradesh, three in Odisha, two in Andhra Pradesh and one each in Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. According to press reports, Tata Power is in talks with Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Odisha.
Bharat Small Reactors (BSRs) are a fleet of proposed 220 MWe compact nuclear reactors designed to provide clean, decentralised captive power directly to India’s heavy, energy-intensive industries. BSRs, formally announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the July 2024 budget, are a modified version of India’s pre-existing, field-proven Indigenous Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (IPHWR-220) technology.
They are derived from India’s standard 220 MW Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) systems. However, instead of natural uranium, BSRs are modified to utilise “slightly enriched uranium” as fuel to enhance efficiency and fuel-cycle performance. They were jointly designed and developed by the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) and NPCIL. The initial “concept design” stage has been approved, and the estimated construction timeline spans 60-72 months per unit once administrative and financial approvals are fully sanctioned.
Unlike traditional nuclear plants funded strictly by the state, BSRs are structured to draw heavily on private enterprise capital. Large industrial users are responsible for all capital and operational expenses, including final plant decommissioning. Because of local safety and legal structures, ownership of the physical asset and responsibility for all nuclear operations, fuel, and used fuel remain strictly with NPCIL. In return for funding the build, the private company earns direct captive rights to the generated low-carbon electricity, ensuring a steady energy grid for production.
