Construction of Kudankulam NPP Unit 5 has officially started in India today. Due to global pandemic of COVID 19, through a virtual ceremony, today (June 29, 2021) an official ceremony was held and the first concrete was poured into the foundation plate of the reactor building for Kudankulam NPP Unit 5.
The Kudankulam NPP construction project has been a symbol of close cooperation between India and Russia. And the Russian company Rosatom which has the most advanced nuclear power technologies is playing the most critical role in the NPP.
What is the significance of the concrete pouring?
This is an indication that the work on the construction of the third stage of the nuclear power plant has started officially.
According to an official statement issued by the Embassy of Russia, New Delhi, the first concrete pouring was preceded by continuous preliminary work. This includes: auxiliary reactor building with the Main Control Room, turbine building, concrete bedding for foundations of the reactor building, and most importantly the power supply building for normal operation, emergency power supply and safety control systems.
On Tuesday, during the concrete pouring ceremony at the construction site of the 5th nuclear reactor of Kudankulam NPP, Russian Ambassador to India, Mr Nikolay Kudashev said: “This is significant moments in the Russian-Indian nuclear energy cooperation. And, it demonstrates our firm devotion to achieve success in all bilateral undertakings.”
“As is stipulated by the existing agreements, together with our Indian colleagues we are ready to launch the serial construction of the state-of-the-art Generation III+ Russian-designed nuclear power units at a new site in India,” Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev stated during the ceremony.
When did it all start?
On April 10, 2014, the General Framework Agreement (GFA) was inked for the construction of Units 3, 4. The negotiations with India started about the construction of Kudankulam NPP Units 5, 6. Based on the outcome of the discussions, an agreement was reached that these Units would be constructed. The agreement was that the construction will be in compliance with the same design as was stipulated for Units 3 & 4.
In June 2017, the Credit Protocol to the Intergovernmental Agreement of December 05, 2008 and the GFA for Kudankulam NPP Units 5 & 6 were inked.
According to the official statement from the Embassy, Russian enterprises are already in the middle of manufacturing equipment for the reactor facilities and turbine hall for Unit 5.
In 2020, the 75th anniversary of the Russian nuclear industry was celebrated. Rosatom is the only company in the world which has the resources and competencies to supply energy solutions across the nuclear supply chain.
During the Soviet era the company had cooperated with 19 countries, today it is working and developing relations with more than 50 including: India, Bangladesh, Uzbekistan, Egypt, Finland, China, France and Hungary. The company is presently supplying 75 power units both in Russia and in 15 countries with fuel, and this constitutes every sixth power reactor in the world.
India-Russian Nuclear Power Plants
India has agreed to a contract of six more NPP to Russia. This is an indication of a special strategic partnership relationship between the two countries. This was discussed between the leaders of both countries in 2019 during the annual summit.
Source: FE
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