GE Hitachi Nuclear
Energy (GEH), a joint venture between GE and Hitachi to serve the global
nuclear industry, has recently signed initial pacts with state-run Nuclear
Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) and Bharat Heavy Electricals
Limited (BHEL) in, New Delhi for the construction of an advanced boiling
water reactor (ABWR) power station in this country.
Under the preliminary agreements,
GEH said it will begin planning with NPCIL and BHEL for the necessary
resources in manufacturing and construction management for a potential
multiple-unit Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR) nuclear power station.
NPCIL said that its memorandum of understanding (MoU) with GE-H would
allow discussions on the "techno-commercial aspects" of the
1350 MWe ABWR to begin. The company said the MoU was signed by S Bhardwaj,
NPCIL's technical director, and Steven Hucik, vice president of GEH's
Global Unified ABWR Projects division.
Pact with
Westinghouse
NPCIL has entered
into a similar agreement with Westinghouse for the construction of AP1000
pressurised water reactors (PWRs) in India. The company said it is also
in discussions with Russia's AtomStroyExport (ASE) about its VVER-1000
reactor, and with France's Areva about its EPR reactor design.
The MoUs with NPCIL and BHEL were signed after GEH executives recently
led a US nuclear industry trade mission to India to explore potential
opportunities to partner with local companies on future nuclear power
plant projects. That trade mission, which took place in January, followed
the signing of an agreement in October 2008 by the US and Indian governments
to cooperate in civilian nuclear projects.
Jack Fuller, president and CEO of GEH, said: "We look forward to
working closely with NPCIL to expand electricity generation for the
people of India. Toward this end, we also look forward to combining
the expertise of BHEL with GEH's experienced, global ABWR supply chain
capabilities."
Kishore Jayaraman, CEO of GE Energy India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka,
told a news agency recently, "We are delighted at having signed
these agreements and see it as a great opportunity to extend our existing
footprint in nuclear energy in India." GE constructed India's first
nuclear plant, the two-unit Tarapur plant - which utilises boiling water
reactors (BWRs) - during the 1960s.
India currently has 17 operating nuclear power units totalling some
3779 MWe, and plans to increase nuclear capacity to 20,000 MWe 2020.