India's Nuclear Power Generation Capacity to Reach 21,880 MW by 2032

Key facts

• India's nuclear power generation capacity is set to rise from the current 8,780 megawatt (MW) to 9,480 MW by the end of the current financial year 2025-26, 13,480 MW by 2029-30 and 21,880 MW by 2031-32.
• Three 700 MW Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) units — RAPS-8 (700 MW) at Rawatbhata in Rajasthan and GHAVP-1 & 2 (two units of 700 MW each) at Gorakhpur in Haryana — are presently under construction.
• Ten reactors of 700 MW each are at various stages of pre-project activities — two each at Kaiga in Karnataka, Chutka in Madhya Pradesh and Gorakhpur in Haryana, and four at Mahi Banswara in Rajasthan.
• Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) has initiated design and development works on Small Modular Reactors (SMRs).
• BARC is developing the 200 MWe Bharat Small Modular Reactor (BSMR-200), 55 MWe Small Modular Reactor (SMR-55) and an up to 5 MW thermal high-temperature gas-cooled reactor meant for hydrogen generation.
• BSMR-200 and SMR-55 can be deployed as captive power plants for energy-intensive industries such as aluminium, steel and metal, repurposing retiring fossil fuel-based power plants and for providing energy for remote as well as off-grid locations.
• Hydrogen produced from high-temperature gas-cooled reactors can be utilised as a clean fuel in the transport sector and in process industries.
• The Nuclear Energy Mission envisages reaching 100 gigawatt nuclear power capacity by 2047.