Snag-hit unit at K'kulam stops power production

Power generation at the first 1,000-MW unit of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KNPP) came to a grinding halt on Sunday due to a technical snag in one of its reactors.

“The electricity production in the first unit of KNPP stopped at 6:38 pm due to a trip in the reactor,” said KNPP Site Director R S Sundar, adding that the snag is due to transience at the steam generator level control.

“After replacement of the spare parts, power generation will resume in the next three days,” said Sundar.

According to the official, the unit's power generation touched 873 MW against its total capacity of 1,000 MW before the trip.

India’s atomic power plant operator Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) is setting up two 1,000-MW Russian reactors at Kudankulam in Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu.

The first unit attained criticality—the beginning of the fission process—in July 2013. Subsequently it was connected to the southern power grid in October 2013, but commercial power generation began only on December 31 last year after several hitches.
The second unit is also expected to be operational soon.

“After getting clearance from the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) very soon, the dummy fuel assembly will be removed and real fuel will be loaded into the reactor. Electricity generation in the second unit is expected from this August, after it attains criticality in July,” said Sundar.