Westinghouse plans 18 nuclear power plants in India by 2047

The Westinghouse Electric Company (WEC) of the US is looking to deploy 18 AP1000 nuclear power plants of 1,000 MW each in India by 2047 and is in talks with Indian industry players for manufacturing them in India.

According to the company, AP1000 features an innovative passive safety system that offers significant capital savings and lower maintenance costs. Two AP1000 reactors are operating in the US and four in China, while more are in the pipeline in Europe.

“We aspire to have 18 AP1000 plants in India by 2047, and that is roughly 20% of the opportunity we see in India, which is not unreasonable. We are in discussions with private players for multiple nuclear power plants across multiple sites,” Alok Mishra, Country Director, Westinghouse (Nuclear) India, said during a policy discussion event hosted by IIFCL and TERI.

The company is already in discussions with the Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) to deploy six nuclear power plants at Kovvada in Andhra Pradesh. About 190.7 acres of land has been acquired for an R&R (rehabilitation and resettlement) colony, and land for an employees’ township has been identified by the district administration.
Make in India push

Mishra said the company is exploring technology transfer to support manufacturing in India.

“India has had a nuclear industry for five decades, and we will leverage the country’s existing manufacturing ecosystem and expand our localisation footprint. Some Indian suppliers could also become part of our global supply chain initiatives. The AP1000 requires fewer components, equipment, steel and concrete than competing technologies, which will be a key driver of cost competitiveness,” he said.

A fleet of six AP1000 reactors is currently in commercial operation, with another 14 units under construction, 14 units contracted and six units selected for the technology. The first AP1000 units to begin operations were Sanmen units 1 and 2 in China in 2018, followed by Haiyang units 1 and 2 in China in 2018-19. These units set records for first-cycle and first-refuelling outage performance.

Vogtle units 3 and 4 in Georgia, US, which came online in 2023-24, were the first new commercial nuclear reactors to begin operations in the US in 30 years.