DAE engages industries to develop nuclear vendors for SMR reactors in India

The department is sharing knowledge and supporting technology development as India seeks greater private-sector participation in nuclear manufacturing, engineering and supply chains

The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) is engaging industries through knowledge sharing and handholding for new technology development for small modular reactors (SMRs), thereby developing nuclear vendors in the field of nuclear technology, Jitendra Singh, Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions and the Prime Minister’s Office, said on Wednesday in a written reply in Parliament.

 

Singh said the development of critical equipment had been initiated with domestic industry and start-ups. He added that critical items, including low-alloy steel forgings for reactor pressure vessels and reactivity-control drive mechanisms, had already been developed by domestic industry. The DAE is aiming to encourage greater participation by the private sector in nuclear manufacturing, engineering services, research and development, and supply chains, he said.

 

“Indian industries play a key role in the manufacture of equipment for these reactors, strengthening indigenous capabilities and the domestic nuclear supply chain,” he said.

 

The Nuclear Energy Mission (NEM) was announced in the Union Budget 2025-26, aimed at achieving 100 GWe by 2047. To accelerate nuclear capacity addition, India is deploying large reactors, such as indigenous 700 MWe pressurised heavy water reactors (PHWRs), and other reactor designs at greenfield sites. It is also developing and deploying SMRs at brownfield sites to repurpose retiring fossil fuel-based power plants, provide captive plants for energy-intensive industries and serve off-grid applications in remote locations.

 

The country aims to develop and operationalise at least five indigenous SMRs by 2033, for which the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) has undertaken the design and development of three types of SMRs, including the 220 MWe Bharat Small Modular Reactor, a 55 MWe SMR and a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGCR) with a capacity of up to 5 MWth for hydrogen production.

 

The Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR), a constituent unit of the DAE, is piloting the second stage of India’s nuclear power programme and is mandated to conduct scientific research and advanced engineering development for establishing sodium-cooled fast breeder reactors (FBRs) and associated closed fuel-cycle facilities, Singh said. This includes the development and application of new and improved materials, techniques, equipment and systems for FBRs.