In another step towards the deepening and bolstering of the bilateral ties between India and France, French electricity major EDF Group has offered to supply engineering studies and equipment for building six EPR nuclear reactors at Maharashtra’s Jaitapur.
EDF Group has submitted a binding techno-commercial offer to the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL).
In a statement, the French Embassy in India said that the offer is a major milestone for the EDF, its partners and the French nuclear industry and will enable discussions aimed at converging towards a binding framework agreement in the coming months.
The offer also includes a detailed technical configuration of the reactors which has taken into account the information provided to EDF and its partners by the NPCIL. Meanwhile, the responsibility to build and commission the six reactors, and to obtain all the permits and consents from Indian authorities rests with NPCIL.
“The Jaitapur Nuclear Power Plant project is a cornerstone of the bilateral cooperation between France and India: with an installed capacity of 9.6 GWe, the plant would be the most powerful in the world; it would generate up to 75 TWh per year and cover the annual consumption of 70 million Indian households while avoiding the emission of 80 million tons of CO2 per year,” the French Embassy said.
The six reactors will create 25,000 jobs during the construction phase and 2,700 permanent jobs, the company said, adding that the French industry will also be benefited during the 15-year long project.
It should be noted that the massive nuclear power project was planned long ago. However, the project has been stalled due to several agitations over the last 15 years. The protestors include local people, as well as Shiv Sena, which is presently a part of the ruling coalition in the state.
The project was further delayed after an accident hit Japanese Fukushima reactor on 11 March 2011.