With the Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor ( 500 MWe) at Kalpakkam set to go critical by March-April 2016, plans are afoot to set up six more Fast Breeder Reactors in the country in a phased manner over the next 15 years.

This was stated by P. Chellapandi, CMD of BHAVINI ( Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Limited), the public sector undertaking responsible for constructing, commissioning and operating FBRs in the country.

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of an international conference on “Characterisation and Quality Control of Nuclear Fuels”, he said that based on the performance of Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor for one year, two more 600 MWe reactors were being planned at Kalpakkam and the government would be approached for sanctioning them. Chairman of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB), S.A. Bhardwaj said the world was looking for other energy alternatives to limit global warming and nuclear was gaining wider recognition. He said that 437 nuclear reactors were operating world over currently and they met 11 per cent of the electricity by producing 2,400 billion units.

Prototype reactor at Kalpakkam set to go critical by March-April 2016