On Monday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will witness the launch of the core loading of India's homegrown 500 MWE prototype fast breeder reactor (PFBR), located at the Kalpakam Nuclear Power Plant, about 70km south of Chennai.
The launch of the PFBR core loading, developed by BH**ini (Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Limited), will mark "a historic milestone for India's nuclear power programme," a press release said.
The reactor core consists of a control subassembly, a cladding subassembly, and a fuel subassembly, and the core loading activities will include the loading of the reactor control subassembly, the cladding subassembly, and the fuel subassembly for power generation, it said.
The PFBR marks the second phase of the country's "closed fuel cycle" three-stage nuclear power program, with spent fuel from the first stage being "reprocessed and used as fuel" in the FBR. "A unique feature of this sodium-cooled PFBR is that it can produce more fuel than it consumes, thereby contributing to self-sufficiency in future fast reactor fuel**," the press release said. ”
With "nuclear waste minimization" from reactors and advanced safety features, the report said, FBR will provide safe, efficient and clean energy and contribute to net-zero goals.
This is an important step towards thorium utilization in the third phase of India's nuclear energy programme. Once operational, India will become the second country after Russia to have a commercially operating fast reactor. ”