Union minister of state for power, Jairam Ramesh is holding a crucial meeting with the chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, Anil Kakodar on Monday to discuss the role of NTPC is setting up nuclear power projects in India in the wake of the recently signed Indo-US civil nuclear deal. NTPC chairman and managing director R S Sharma will also attend the meeting.

The meeting assumes significance as Kakodkar in response to a recent letter by Jairam Ramesh had said that NTPC can go ahead with its nuclear plans provided it sets up a joint venture with the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL), which will hold a majority stake in the JV. This arrangement, according to power ministry officials, will prove to be against the interest of NTPC, which has already amended its articles of association for venturing into nuclear power generation.

?AEC chairman has also clarified that on Sunday NPCIL is the only company which has technical skills to set up and run a nuclear power plant in the country. While there is no denying this fact and even NTPC is not against the idea of setting up nuclear project with NPCIL.

However, if NTPC is allowed only a minority stake, its role will be limited to that of a mere investor.

NTPC wants to get into nuclear generation in a big way and is open to a 50:50 arrangement with NPCIL. There is enough scope for companies other than NPCIL to set up nuclear capacities,? said a senior ministry official.

While amending its articles of association, NTPC has proposed to set up two nuclear power plants of 1,000 mw each by 2020. ?NTPC is ready to do take a bigger mandate, and can even set up 5,000 mw nuclear capacity of even more provided it is allowed to do so. NPCIL is our sister PSU but NTPC also needs to be given atleast a 50% stake if not a majority control in the project,? said a NTPC official.

Officials said that NTPC being a state-owned company also qualifies under the existing guidelines of the Atomic Energy Act 1962, to set up and own nuclear power plants. Jairam Ramesh will ask the AEC chairman to allow NTPC set up nuclear power capacities with majority control and emerge as another big player after NPCIL in the nuclear power space.

?To begin with, NTPC can continue to draw experience from NPCIL. A proposal to form a new JV company with 50:50 equity participation from NTPC and NPCIL will also be discussed,? the official said. Apart from NTPC, players from the private sector like Anil Ambani?s Reliance Power, Tata Power, GVK and others have also evinced keen interest to set up nuclear power projects.

However, sources said that AEC chairman has clarified that the private players, too, will have to come along with NPCIL and will have to settle for a minority stake.