India needs to review some
of its financing rules and develop a stronger talent pipeline to
achieve its ambitious goal of expanding nuclear power capacity
to 100 gigawatts (GW) by 2047, officials and industry executives
said on Wednesday.
India’s sovereign green bond framework, green deposit and
financing rules need to be reviewed as they currently do not
cover nuclear investments, said Abhay Karandikar, a member of
top government think tank NITI Aayog.
India last year opened its tightly controlled nuclear sector
to private companies in a bid to attract foreign technology and
investment.
The South Asian nation expects that the industry will
require nearly $210 billion of investment to expand capacity
from the current level of 8.8 GW.
Global financial institutions, including the World Bank,
have started reviews to support investments into nuclear
projects, Karandikar said at PowerGen India’s event in New
Delhi.
The shortage of specialised education and training is a
major concern, industry executives said, noting that the
country’s clean energy industry is already facing a talent
crunch.
“There is a lack of nuclear courses in India, starting from
schools to top universities, barring a few premier institutes,”
Kalirajan S, managing director of EDF Nuclear Projects India
Pvt, said.
France’s EDF has been conducting certification programmes
with vendors in India and plans to expand them further to help
develop a local nuclear supply chain, he said.
NITI Aayog has formed a committee to look at how India can
expand its nuclear expertise at all levels — from technicians to
research and development, Karandikar said.