NTPC Goes Global: A New Nuclear Era with Russia and France

India’s largest power producer, NTPC, has entered into non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) with Russia’s Rosatom and France’s Électricité de France (EDF) to explore potential collaboration on large pressurised water reactor (PWR) nuclear power projects. The agreements encompass the entire project lifecycle, from conceptualisation and design to construction and commissioning, with a strong emphasis on indigenisation.

The development follows recent policy reforms by the Indian government to promote private sector participation in nuclear power generation and to ease supplier liability norms, which had earlier constrained the adoption of foreign nuclear technologies. Through these collaborations, NTPC intends to assess technology options, evaluate cost and economic viability, and structure tenders capable of attracting leading global nuclear technology providers, including Korea Electric Power Company and Westinghouse.

Leveraging its extensive experience in large-scale power projects and its joint ventures with Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL), NTPC is targeting the development of 30 GW of nuclear capacity by 2047 through its subsidiary, NTPC Parmanu Urja Nigam. This aligns with India’s broader objective of achieving 100 GW of nuclear capacity, with projects such as the Mahi Banswara Rajasthan Atomic Power Project underscoring NTPC’s expanding role in the country’s nuclear energy programme.

News by Rahul Yelligetti.