Mumbai, The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board has issued permission for First Pour of Concrete for construction of units 5 and 6 of Kaiga Nuclear Power Plant, it said in a statement on Saturday.
The permission was issued after satisfactory completion of safety review of the design of 2x700MWe Pressurized Heavy Water Reactor units being established at the Kaiga nuclear power plant site, against the safety requirements specified by AERB.
“The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board issued permission for First Pour of Concrete for construction of units 5 and 6 of Kaiga Nuclear Power Plant on February 24,” the statement said.
It followed the well-established multi-tier review process of the regulatory body. “The board of AERB on February 23, after reviewing the outcome of safety reviews, approved the FPC for these units,” the statement said.
The First Pour of Concrete signifies commencement of construction of the nuclear power plant after excavation of the site.
The 700MWe Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors are of indigenous design, developed by Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd. , and incorporates many advanced safety features in-line with the requirements specified by AERB, which take account of the current IAEA safety standards.
The Kaiga Nuclear Power Plant site is in Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka where four units of 220MWe PHWRs are already operational.
The 700 MWe PHWRs at Kaiga 5 and 6 are of similar design as units 3 and 4 of Kakrapar Atomic Power Station in Gujarat, which were earlier licenced by AERB for regular operation in July 2025.
Two more units of 700 MWe PHWRs, Rajasthan Atomic Power Station -7 and 8 are currently undergoing commissioning at Rawatbhata site in Rajasthan.
AERB had earlier permitted operation of RS unit 7 up to 100 per cent power, for commissioning, on January 30.
Regarding the permission for FPC, A K Balasubrahmanian, AERB chairman, said, “AERB’s permission for Kaiga 5 and 6 follows an extensive review to ensure compliance to safety and regulatory requirements and paves the path for construction of nuclear power plant based on approved design, safety analysis and following the requisite quality assurance requirements.”
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