During Trump’s India Visit, MoU Likely To Be Signed For Six Nuclear Reactors

State-run Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) is likely to sign a deal with United States’ energy firm Westinghouse for six nuclear reactors during US President Donald Trump’s India visit next week, reports Economic Times.

According to the report, the deal will lay out timelines and the lead local constructor for the reactors to be built a Kovvada in southern India and will also address concerns over India’s nuclear liability law.

The sale of the nuclear reactors is being discussed by US since it signed a civil nuclear energy pact with India in 2008. However, the sale could not go ahead due to the pending issues including the need to bring Indian nuclear liability rules in-line with international norms, which require the costs of any accident to be channelled to the operator rather than the maker of a nuclear power station.

Earlier last week, representatives from US energy and commerce departments, Westinghouse, US-India Strategic Partnership Forum and the Nuclear Energy Institute visited India to hold talks with government officials as part of a commercial mission to promote nuclear exports to India.

"We are encouraging moving forward with Westinghouse and NPCIL to sign a MoU. It certainly is a private industry to private industry, a business to business decision," Dr Rita Baranwal, assistant secretary for the office of nuclear energy in the US Department of Energy was quoted in the report as saying.

Baranwal, who was part of the mission, said that they were optimistic that a memorandum of understanding (MoU) will be signed soon.

After signing of the MoU, the two sides will reportedly begin contract negotiations, delivery schedules and pick vendors.

Earlier on Thursday (20 February), Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said that Westinghouse and NPCIL were in talks to move forward with the project.

"Following resolution of Westinghouse's bankruptcy issues, the two sides are in discussion regarding the division of responsibility of the work," he said.

Earlier last month, it was reported that both Indian and US officials had several round of discussions on US company Westinghouse’s building six AP1000 reactors for India. The project was stalled in 2017 after the US company filed for bankruptcy after cost overruns. Other US company GE is also developing nuclear power plants in India.

Canada's Brookfield Asset Management bought Westinghouse from Toshiba in August 2018 and has sought progress on the India sale over the next six-seven months, the member of the U.S. delegation said.

However, India has made clear that there is no going back on the 2010 Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Law, which foreign governments and vendors say leaves open the possibility of filing cases against suppliers for nuclear accidents, rather than the operators of the plants.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government, however, has tried to limit the effect of the Civil Liability law by setting up an insurance fund for potential victims of a nuclear accident.

Despite the measures by Modi government, Baranwal said that there were still certain open issues around the liability issue.

In a bid to lower its reliance on fossil fuels, India has planned to increase its nuclear power capacity by over three times. The contract between India and US is expected to give a big boost to country’s $150 billion nuclear power programme.