Photo courtesy: GE Steam PowerGE Steam Power has signed a $165 million contract with India’s BHEL (Bharat Heavy Electrical Ltd) for the supply of three nuclear steam turbines out of six units for NPCIL’s (Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd) domestic nuclear programme, with phase one being developed at Gorakhpur, Haryana (four units) and Kaiga, Karnataka (two units).
India’s domestic programme includes 12 units of 700MWe being developed by NPCIL with their own pressurised heavy water reactor (PHWR) nuclear technology. In total, it will represent 8.4GW of CO
2-free electricity for the country, enough to power more than 14 million homes. In 2018, GE and BHEL signed a business cooperation agreement and a ‘License and Technology Transfer Agreement’ to enable them to manufacture nuclear steam turbines of 700MW.
Supporting the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative — the self-reliant India campaign launched by the government of India — GE will manufacture the nuclear steam turbines at its facility in Sanand, Gujarat (India). These turbines are being engineered and manufactured with an improved design for enhanced output.
Frédéric Wiscart, GE Steam Power’s nuclear new build leader, said: “Nuclear energy is one of the most dependable sources of carbon-free power, providing round-the-clock energy supply without interruption. At GE Steam Power, we are proud to partner with BHEL and to continue to support NPCIL and India in its path to a reliable and lower-carbon-energy future. With our facility in Sanand we have the local manufacturing capability to deliver on the nuclear aspirations of India domestic programme.”
Today, GE’s steam-turbine technology operates in 50% of the world’s nuclear power plants, producing 200GW for the global grid. GE Steam Power has already supplied nuclear steam turbines in consortium with BHEL for the ongoing NPCIL projects at Kakrapar and Rawatbhatha, which will deliver 2.8GW of CO
2-free energy once completed.