By Riju Raj Singh Jamwal, Managing Partner of JRD & Partners, Interleges member in India.
Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) have the potential to be an important component at present for the worldwide nuclear energy renaissance.
SMRs are simpler to build and operate, as well as being suitable for deployment in harsh environmental conditions, while requiring more diluted investment than Large Reactors (LRs).
Around the world, a variety of financial and economic models have been developed by the scientific community in order to assess the competitiveness of SMRs.
This paper investigates the attractiveness of SMRs for India in the present given scenario.
India is the second most populated country in the world with rapid economic growth and a huge requirement for energy. There is also good public acceptance, political support, and judicial consciousness for nuclear power in India which are important factors favoring the deployment of SMR’s.
Further, Government of India’s Policy is that Nuclear Power is critical for achieving India’s clean energy targets set in COP-26 and India’s effort is to achieve net zero emissions by 2070.
The G-20 Summit of 2023 paved the way for development of SMR’s, though to negate the concerns regarding viability and efficacy around SMR’s, the involvement of the private sector remains a key debate within the Policy circle.
India has to reconsider the amendment to the Atomic Energy Laws including the licensing and liability regimes that includes the development motive along with economic benefit to pave a path forward and to provide leeway for involvement of the private sector, foreign investment, and startups to provide a reliable low carbon source of electricity that complements intermittent renewals by way of developing the future of SMR’s in India.
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