Why in news?

Draft rules issued by the Department of Atomic Energy under the SHANTI Act could give Russia a significant advantage in India's nuclear sector, particularly in the emerging field of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs).

What’s in Today’s Article?

• The Key Rule That Could Favour Russia
• What Are SMRs?
• Russia's Global SMR Lead
• Cost Advantage for Russian Reactors

The Key Rule That Could Favour Russia

• The draft SHANTI rules mandate that foreign nuclear technology imported for use in India:
  • must have its design certified or approved by the regulatory body in its country of origin, and
  • must already be operational there or in another foreign country.
• This "already operational" requirement is significant because very few global SMR designs currently meet this bar — giving an edge to countries with proven, running reactors.

What Are SMRs?

• Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) are advanced nuclear reactors with about a third of the generating capacity of conventional nuclear plants, yet capable of producing substantial low-carbon electricity.
• They are particularly suited to remote regions with limited grid infrastructure and to localised industrial applications.

Russia's Global SMR Lead

• Currently, only two SMR projects are operational worldwide:
  • Russia's Akademik Lomonosov floating power unit (two 35 MWe modules), commercially operational since May 2020 — the world's northernmost nuclear power plant, based in Pevek, Russia.
  • China's HTR-PM demonstration project, grid-connected in December 2021 and commercially operational since December 2023.
• Other global SMR developers — Holtec International, Rolls-Royce SMR, NuScale's VOYGR, Westinghouse's AP300, and GE-Hitachi's BWRX-300 — remain in the design certification stage, with none yet operational.
• Under the draft SHANTI rules, this could disqualify them from entering India's market in the near term.
• Russia is the only country in the world with proven expertise in floating nuclear power solutions, having presented India with details of this technology in April 2024.

Russia's Broader Nuclear Push in India

• The Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP) in Tamil Nadu — India's largest nuclear power station – is a flagship India-Russia nuclear cooperation project.
  • KKNPP Units 1 and 2 (VVER-1000 reactors) were connected to the grid in 2013 and 2016 respectively.
    • A VVER-1000 is a 1,000 MWe Russian-designed pressurized water reactor (PWR) where ordinary water acts as both coolant and neutron moderator.
  • The project envisions six units with a total installed capacity of 6,000 MWe.
• Russia is pushing for serial construction of new-generation VVER-1200 reactors in India, alongside its SMR proposals.

Cost Advantage for Russian Reactors

• Light Water Reactors (LWRs) offered by French and US firms are significantly costlier than India's indigenous Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs).
• Russian reactors are only marginally more expensive than Indian PHWRs, while remaining cheaper than Western LWR alternatives:
  • Indigenous PHWRs: ~Rs 18 crore per MW-electric.
  • Russian reactors: ~Rs 34 crore per MW-electric.
• As per the World Nuclear Association, capital costs account for at least 60% of the levelised cost of electricity (LCOE) from nuclear plants, making upfront cost and financing terms critical factors — an area where Russia currently holds an edge over Western competitors.

Conclusion

As India expands its nuclear ambitions through the SHANTI Act framework, the "proven and operational" technology requirement — combined with Russia's existing SMR expertise and cost competitiveness — positions Moscow favourably over Western players.

This could shape the geopolitics of India's clean energy transition, reinforcing Russia's role as a key nuclear partner even as India pursues technological diversification.