India’s 2nd Home-Made 700 MW Nuclear Reactor Starts Operation At Gujarat’s Kakrapar Plant

New Delhi: India’s second indigenously-built 700 MW nuclear power reactor at Kakrapar Atomic Power Station (KAPS) in Gujarat has started its operation at its full capacity.

In a statement, the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) said, “The full power operation of KAPS-4 after the smooth operation of its twin unit KAPS-3 at full power demonstrates the strength of the first of a kind indigenous 700 MW Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) design.”

The KAPS-4 unit achieved first criticality on December 17, 2023. Its commercial operations started on March 31, 2024.

India is constructing 14 more 700 MW nuclear power reactors of the same design. They are expected to be operational progressively by 2031-32.

The NPCIL presently operates a fleet of 24 reactors with a total capacity of 8180 MW. The NPCIL has eight units with a capacity of 6800 MW under construction.