Two state-run undertakings, Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) and the Nuclear Power Corporation (NPC), will soon form a 50:50 JV for manufacturing nuclear reactors. The board of directors of both the companies have given consent for the proposed JV. The JV company will produce reactors of 700 mw and 1,000 mw for nuclear power projects. The initial investment will be worth Rs 500 crore.
Informed sources told FE, ?The JV, to be formed very soon, will be instrumental in manufacturing reactors for the nuclear power capacity addition proposed by NPC. BHEL may in turn rope in Alstom or any other player to bring in expertise in this segment.?
NPC, with an installed nuclear capacity of 3,900 mw, has launched the plan to increase the total nuclear capacity to 20,000 mw by 2020. It has launched the capacity addition of 3,920 mw comprising 440 mw at Kaiga 3 and 4, 440 mw at Rajasthan, 2,000 mw at Kudankulam and 500 mw at Kalpakkam. Besides, the Centre has approved sites for the addition of 6,000 mw comprising 2×1,000 mw at Jaitapur (Maharashtra), 2×1,000 mw Kudankulam, (Tamil Nadu), 2×700 Kakrapar (Gujarat) and 2×700 Rawathbhata (Rajasthan). At Jaitapur, NPC has proposed to set up a capacity of 10,000 mw in phases.
BHEL?s move is crucial as it has already launched its plan to increase its manufacturing capacity to 15,000 mw by 2009. BHEL has formed JV with NTPC for carrying out engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) activities in the power sector on mutually beneficial terms. BHEL designed, manufactured and commissioned equipment accounts for around 70% of NTPC?s installed capacity. The company has so far supplied state-of-the-art power generating equipment of various ratings corresponding to nearly 19,000 mw for NTPC projects, through international competitive bidding (ICB), against global tenders.
Moreover, BHEL has also formed JV with the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) to set up the first 2×800 mw supercritical power project. The JV is expected to be in place in about three months and work on the project is expected to commence shortly thereafter. The boilers and their auxiliaries would be manufactured by BHEL at its Tiruchirapalli and Ranipet works in Tamil Nadu. These 800 mw coal-fired units will be able to harness the multiple benefits of higher plant efficiencies, economies of scale and to generate electricity in an environment friendly manner. BHEL is also currently in talks with various states including Maharashtra for the formation of similar JVs.