Maharashtra bets big on nuclear energy with Rs 4.5 lakh crore investment plan

In a major nuclear energy push, the Maharashtra government on Tuesday signed memoranda of understanding with Reliance Industries Ltd, Adani Power Ltd and its subsidiary Coastal-Maha Atomic Energy Ltd and National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) involving investments of up to Rs 4.5 lakh crore.

The proposed projects together are expected to generate over 20,000 MW of electricity and create nearly 1.2 lakh direct and indirect employment opportunities, transforming the Konkan coast, which is renowned for its beaches, Alphonso mangoes, cashew plantations and ecologically rich Arabian Sea shoreline. 

The latest nuclear push comes even as the ambitious Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project, being developed by the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) in collaboration with France’s EDF, continues to position the Konkan region as the country’s emerging atomic energy hub.

The proposed 9,900 MW Jaitapur project in Rajapur in the Ratnagiri district — regarded as one of the world’s largest planned nuclear power plants — along with the newly announced projects, could make the Konkan belt one of India’s biggest nuclear energy clusters. Locals had protested the project in the past. 

Adani Power Ltd and Coastal-Maha Atomic Energy Ltd have proposed setting up a 6,000 MW nuclear power project in Ratnagiri district with an investment of Rs 1.5 lakh crore and employment potential of 12,000 jobs.

Reliance Industries Ltd has proposed Bharat Small Reactors, Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) and nuclear power reactors at Purnagadh in Ratnagiri district. The project capacity ranges from two units of 220 MW each to six units of 1,200 MW each, with proposed investments ranging between Rs 8,000 crore and Rs 2 lakh crore depending on the final scale. The project is expected to create over one lakh employment opportunities.

NTPC Ltd has proposed a nuclear power plant at Devgad in Sindhudurg district with six units and a combined generation capacity ranging between 4,000 MW and 7,200 MW. The proposed investment is around Rs 1 lakh crore with employment potential estimated at around 5,000 jobs.

Collectively, the projects could add between 10,440 MW and 20,400 MW of nuclear generation capacity in Maharashtra, substantially strengthening India’s clean-energy ambitions amid rising electricity demand and energy transition goals.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, in whose presence the MoUs were signed, said Maharashtra would play a key role in helping India emerge as an “energy-rich nation” while contributing towards the country’s long-term net-zero carbon emission goals envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

However, the expansion of nuclear infrastructure in the Konkan region is also likely to revive environmental and livelihood concerns that have surrounded the Jaitapur project for over a decade.

Sections of local residents, farmers, fisherfolk and environmental groups have opposed the project citing apprehensions over seismic safety, marine ecology, land acquisition and the impact on the fragile coastal ecosystem. The protests had at times turned intense, making Jaitapur one of India’s most debated nuclear energy projects.