CHENNAI: Decks have been cleared for the construction of two indigenous Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs) of 700 MWe capacity each at Kakrapar in Gujarat with the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests giving them the final clearance. The environmental clearance for constructing two more PHWRs of 700 MWe capacity each at Rawatbhatta in Rajasthan is awaited. This is the first time that the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL), which builds nuclear reactors in the country, will construct PHWRs of 700 MWe. It has so far built PHWRs with capacities of 220 MWe and 540 MWe.

S.K. Agrawal, Director, Projects, NPCIL, said: ``We have received the final clearance from the Ministry of Environment and Forests for the 700 MWe indigenous PHWRs at Kakrapar. We hope to get the clearance later for two more units at Rawatbhatta.'' Pre-project activities are already under way at both the sites.

The excavation for the foundation-pit of the two 700 MWe reactors at Kakrapar, about 80 km from Surat, would begin in 2007, Mr. Agrawal said. The first pour of the concrete might take place in 2008. He called the 700 MWe PHWRs ``a technical improvement'' of the two 540 MWe PHWRs already generating electricity at Tarapur in Maharastra. ``As far as the PHWR programme is concerned, the construction of the 700 MWe units is a big jump for our indigenous programme.

There will be no more construction of 220 MWe and 540 MWe reactors in the country. We will repeat the construction of 700 MWe reactors at many places,'' Mr. Agrawal said.

There are 16 nuclear reactors operating in India, with a total capacity of 3,900 MWe. Of these 16 reactors, 14 are PHWRs, which use natural uranium as fuel, and heavy water as coolant and moderator. The remaining two are Light Water Reactors (LWRs), which use enriched uranium as fuel, and light water as coolant and moderator.

Right now, construction of seven reactors of three types is under way at four sites. They are two LWRs of 1,000 MWe each at Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu; one 500 Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor at Kalpakkam, also in Tamil Nadu; two PHWRs of 220 MWe each at Rawatbhatta; and two PHWRs of 220 MWe each at Kaiga in Karnataka.

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