Construction of Second Phase of India's Kudankulam NPP May Start in 2015

The construction of the second stage of India’s Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) built with Russian assistance may begin in 2015, Minister of State for Prime Minister Office Jitendra Singh said Wednesday.

NEW DELHI (Sputnik) — A general framework agreement on the construction of the second phase, which includes a third and fourth power unit for the nuclear power plant, was signed by Russia and India in 2014.

"The Government has accorded financial sanction for two more projects namely Gorakhpur Haryana Anu Vidyut Pariyojana (GHAVP) Units 1&2 (2x700 MW) and Kudankulam Nuclear Power Projects (KKNPP) Units – 3&4 (2X1000 MW) with a total capacity of 3400 MW. These are being readied for start of construction in the current year," Singh said in a written reply to a query in the lower house of India's parliament.

The former Soviet Union and India agreed in 1988 to build the Kudankulam NPP at the very southern tip of the Hindustan peninsula.

The Nuclear Power Corporation of India and Russia's nuclear agency Rosatom launched a much-delayed joint project to build the Kudankulam NPP in 2012. Unit 1 of the plant reached full capacity in July 2014, while Unit 2 is said to be nearing completion.

The head of Russia’s Rosatom nuclear corporation, Sergey Kirienko, said in December 2014 the construction of the plant’s third and fourth blocks was expected to begin in early 2016.