India is interested in nuclear energy and multiplied international cooperation agreements for the development of its civilian nuclear program, giving France, in particular, possible industrial and economic opportunities.
As such, the Jaitapur nuclear project has reached a decisive stage with the signing of a cooperation protocol that validates the construction of nuclear facilities in India.
It is a contract in negotiation with the Indian authorities for nearly 10 years that has just been concluded by the French electrician EDF. Earlier this year, during an official visit to India, Emmanuel Macron announced the signing of an industrial agreement with the Indian electrician Nuclear Power Corp of India (NPCIL).
A few days later, the Head of State said he was confident about the ability of France and India to finalize this agreement before the end of the year.
On June 26th, Jean-Bernard Levy’s group and his American counterpart General Electric announced the signing of a cooperation agreement for the construction of six third generation nuclear reactors in southwestern India.
Under the terms of the Memorandum of Understanding signed by Xavier Ursat, Executive Director of the EDF Group in charge of the New Nuclear Engineering and Projects Division, and Andreas Lusch, CEO of General Electric’s Steam Power Business, six EPR will be built on the Jaitapur nuclear site, with a unit capacity of 1,650 MW.
EDF and General Electric are committed to the realization of the conventional island of each of the 6 EPR reactors. This equipment, also called “turbine island”, is one of the main elements of a nuclear power plant: composed of a steam turbine, a condenser and separators- superheaters, the conventional island ensures the transformation of the steam produced. by the nuclear reactor in electricity.
“GE will design and supply the main components of the conventional islands of the Jaitapur nuclear power plant. The manufacturer will also offer operating assistance services and a training program adapted to the needs of NPCIL, the Indian owner and operator of the future nuclear power plant under discussion. EDF will act as engineering integrator for the entire project (nuclear island, conventional island and ancillary systems) and will provide all necessary input data “.
India should benefit from the extensive expertise and long-standing collaboration between EDF and GE, which have already evolved jointly on other nuclear projects. The American company is indeed the main supplier of EDF on the site of the EPR Flamanville and on the Hinkley Point in the United Kingdom.
“This strategic agreement is a new step in the realization of the Jaitapur project, the largest nuclear project in the world. We are proud to be able to rely on an experienced partner, whose skills are widely recognized internationally. This collaboration with GE, based on the complementarity of our skills and the convergence of our long-term strategies in India, is promising for the continuation of this project, which is crucial for the future of the Indian energy mix and for EDF, “said Xavier Ursat.
