Atomic Energy Regulatory Board(AERB) Approves Loading of Fuel at Kudankulam plant

The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) has given its approval for loading fuel at the 1000-MW Unit 1 of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant  after a meeting of the regulatory board on July 11,2013 Thursday evening.

This is the last step before the unit starts production of electricity.

 "The board in principle has given its clearance for loading fuel after reviewing various stages of progress of the Unit 1. An official communication is being sent out to the Nuclear Power Corporation Limited (NPCIL) and the plant authorities in this regard," said S S Bajaj, chairman of the AERB.

The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) has given its nod for controlled fission process or “first approach to criticality” (FAC) for the first unit of the plant.The FAC is an important step towards the beginning of power production. An AERB release said that while granting the clearance for the FAC, it was ensured that the Supreme Court directives of May 6 were fully complied with. The approval was given after an in-depth review of associated safety aspects.

Clearance for the FAC, however, does not mean the stage is set for the commissioning of the plant soon.

Several low-power tests will have to be carried out to verify the conformance of the reactor’s characteristics to design objectives.

The AERB would review the results of the tests before giving clearance for the next stage of commissioning, which would entail a phased increase in the power level of the reactor