With atomic regulator’s nod, Kudankulam reactor being fuelled (Second Lead)
September 21st, 2012 - 9:11 pm ICT by IANSChennai, Sep 21 (IANS) India’s atomic energy regulator Friday said it has given its nod to Nuclear Power Corporation Ltd (NPCIL) to load enriched uranium fuel rods in the first reactor at Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KNPP) in Tamil Nadu. The process of loading is underway.
“We have given the nod to NPCIL to load the fuel at KNPP on Tuesday. NPCIL has completed the stipulations that we had earlier laid in our Aug 10 sanction to load the fuel,” Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) chairman S.S. Bajaj told IANS from Vienna, where he is attending the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) conference.
According to him, it would take around 8-10 days for NPCIL to complete the fuel loading process.
“NPCIL has fulfilled all the conditions that had been laid by us,” Bajaj said.
The NCPIL, the country’s atomic power plant operator, is in the process of loading the 163 enriched uranium fuel rods in the first reactor at KNPP from Wednesday, sources told IANS.
Senior NPCIL officials were however not available to comment on the issue.
The People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE), in a statement Friday, demanded NPCIL stop the fuelling process immediately.
NPCIL is setting up the KNPP at Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu’s Tirunelveli district, around 650 km from here with two Russian-made VVER 1,000 MW reactors.
After the reactor is fuelled, activities to approach first criticality-starting fission chain reaction, for the first time in a reactor, will be taken up.
Then the power generation will be gradually scaled up on AERB’s permission, based on the results of various studies.
Observers from IAEA are expected at KNPP as the reactors fall under the safeguard agreement.
The KNPP is an outcome of the Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) signed between India and the erstwhile Soviet Union in 1988. However, the project construction only began in 2001.
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- Kudankulam to comply with AERB stipulations - Sep 17, 2012
- Kudankulam reactor to be fuelled around Sep 11, protestors to intensify stir - Sep 07, 2012
- Kudankulam reactor may get one year operational licence - Sep 08, 2012
- Kudankulam safe but fuel loading permission not given: Atomic panel - Sep 13, 2012
- Exempting Russians from n-liability unacceptable: CPI - Sep 19, 2012
- AERB clears fuel loading in Kudankulam nuclear reactor - Aug 10, 2012
Tags: atomic energy agency, atomic energy regulatory board, atomic power plant, energy regulator, fission chain reaction, fuel loading, fuel rods, governmental agreement, international atomic energy, international atomic energy agency, international atomic energy agency iaea, kudankulam, npcil, nuclear power corporation, nuclear power project, power plant operator, tamil nadu, tirunelveli district, uranium fuel, vver