Tamil Nadu: Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant To Reach 6,000 MW Capacity By 2027

Union Minister of State for Atomic Energy Dr Jitendra Singh on Thursday (8 December) stated in the Rajya Sabha that the remaining four units of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP) will be completed by 2027.

KKNPP’s unit 1 and 2 of 1,000 MW capacity each are already in operation and the remaining four units of 4,000 MW capacity are under construction.

On their progressive completion, the full capacity of the Kudankulam site of 6,000 MW is expected to be reached by 2027.

India’s largest nuclear power station

The Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP) is one of the largest nuclear power stations in India.

It is situated in Kudankulam, a town in the Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu. It is being constructed within the scope of the Russia-India Inter-Governmental Agreement.

KKNPP is being built by the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and Russia's ASE Group of Companies, an engineering division of Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corporation.

It is scheduled to have six VVER-1000 reactors with an installed capacity of 1,000 MW each. The Unit 1 of the plant was synchronised with the southern power grid in October 2013 and is generating electricity.

The second Unit with capacity 1,000 MW had become critical for the first time in July 2016. It was connected to the grid in August 2016 and it started commercial operation in October 2016.

The construction of Unit 3 and 4 is underway. The ‘first pour of concrete’ for Unit 3 of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant, which marks the beginning of the construction of the project, happened on June 29, 2017. The Units 3 and 4 Reactor buildings foundation slabs have already been made and the construction is on schedule.