India’s largest nuclear power reactor becomes operational

India’s biggest indigenous nuclear power reactor on Wednesday became operational as criticality was achieved at the country’s first 700-MW power plant at Kakrapar atomic power station in Gujarat.

With the criticality—initiation of the self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction inside the reactor’s core—achieved successfully, the N-power company will conduct few other tests and progressively increase the plant’s output, before it is connected to the grid within a week.

It took 10 long years for the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd to complete the project whose construction began in November 2010.

Read: Kakrapar unit 3 to be commissioned in April

"Big Day in India's Nuclear history as indigenously designed 700 MWe Kakrapar Atomic Power Plant-3 in Gujarat achieved criticality. Nation salutes our scientists on this stellar achievement. New India is marching ahead to realise PM @NarendraModi's vision of #AatmaNirbharBharat," Amit Shah tweeted.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi too congratulated nuclear scientists, saying the indigenous reactor is a shining example of the 'Make in India' campaign.

The fuel loading of the reactor was completed by the middle of March 2020 following which several tests and procedures were carried out during the lockdown period following all Covid-19 guidelines, NPCIL said in a statement.

Barring two 540 MW units at Tarapur, majority of the Indian nuclear power reactors are pressurised heavy water reactors of 220 MW capacity. In addition, there are two 1000 MW Russian light-water units at Kudankulam, two old 160 MW boiling water reactors at Tarapur and a 200-MW unit at Rawtbhatta.

NPCIL officials blamed the delay in the supply of critical equipment as the main reason for the third unit at the Kakrapar Atomic Power Project to take such a long time. The inner containment dome of KAPP-3 was installed only in June 2016.

Construction of a second 700-MW unit at Kakrapar began in 2011 and is likely to be finished next year.