At least three top corporate leaders have expressed their desire to do business in civilian nuclear energy.
New Delhi: While the political establishment remains caught in the dialectics of the Indo-US nuclear deal, Corporate India has already booked a stake in the multi-billion dollar industry that is expected to emerge once nuclear power becomes a commercial reality.
At least three top corporate leaders have written letters to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, expressing their desire to do business in civilian nuclear energy. These include Ratan Tata, Anil Ambani and the Larsen & Toubro business house, a government source who wished to remain unidentified said.
An industry source who also spoke on the condition of anonymity disclosed that a host of other companies are equally eager to join the nuclear power bandwagon and they have expressed interest to the PMO as well as the Department of Atomic Energy.
The source identified them as Anil Agarwal’s Vedanta, the GMR Group, the Thapar Group and Mahindra & Mahindra. In fact, Vedanta announced its interest in nuclear energy through an advertisement seeking consultancy expertise in the sector.
The corporate world’s enthusiastic support for nuclear energy has given the government immeasurable confidence to continue ongoing negotiations with the United States,
International Atomic Energy Agency and Nuclear Suppliers Group in the face of stiff opposition from the Left and the BJP.
But while industry is gung-ho, the word from the government is cautious because of the sensitive nature of the issue.
All the sources DNA spoke to said these are early days and warned against reading too much into the interest shown by industrial houses.
“We cannot do anything till the Indo-US nuclear deal is through and all the follow-up steps, like the safeguards agreement with the IAEA and adjustments in NSG guidelines, are complete. After that, we will have to frame a policy for civilian nuclear power generation and make changes in the Atomic Energy Act accordingly,’’ a source said.
Industry sources acknowledged the hurdles ahead. Among the decisions the government will have to take are the parameters of private participation (whether through public-private partnership or full private ownership), the rules for foreign investment and the location of future nuclear power plants.
Yet, despite the uncertainty, both Indian and international firms, sensing huge business opportunities, are pushing hard for nuclear power to become a commercial enterprise.
While the government’s plans envisage 20,000 MW of nuclear power by the year 2020, one industry source said their own projections are much higher if the private sector is allowed full play.
It is significant that some of the most active lobbyists with the US Congress for the Indo-US nuclear deal are American companies like GE which have big business interests in nuclear energy.
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