Megha Engineering Enters Nuclear Power Sector with Rs. 12,800 Cr. NPCIL Order
Megha Engineering Infrastructure Ltd. (MEIL), a Hyderabad-based EPC player, has entered nuclear power segment with its first order from Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd. (NPCIL). This order has been valued at Rs. 12,800 crore, and entails EPC civil works on two nuclear reactors in Karnataka.
Kaiga Atomic Power Station Units 5 & 6 to be Constructed
As per the purchase order received by Megha Engineering from NPCIL, the company will be executing construction of two nuclear reactors of 700 MW generation capacity each, namely units 5 and 6 of the Kaiga Atomic Power Station in Karnataka. These reactors will be Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs). “This is the biggest-ever order placed by NPCIL and marks MEIL’s first major step into the nuclear energy sector”, stated MEIL’s official release.
MEIL also mentioned that it had outbid competitors such as BHEL and L&T to secure the aforementioned project.
It must be noted that Power Mech Projects Ltd. (PMPL) had secured turbine island packages for units 5 & 6 at Kaiga Atomic Power Station from BHEL in May 2024. Turbine island is the structure in a nuclear power plant which houses turbine and the associated generator.
Kaiga Units 5 & 6 Part of India’s Fleet Mode Expansion of Nuclear Reactors by 2031
Indian Government had accorded approval for the development of 10 PHWR nuclear reactors at once. This bulk approval was given for 700 MW PHWRs which are to come up by 2031 in 4 nuclear power complexes. These rectors are to come up at an estimated cost of Rs. 1.05 lakh crore. Since this move will add a fleet of 10 new reactors, development of these reactors is being referred to as being done in ‘fleet mode’.
Kaiga units 5 & 6 are part of this fleet, with the other reactors being in Haryana (Gorakhpur units 3 & 4), Madhya Pradesh (Chutka units 1 & 2), and in Rajasthan (Mahi Banswara units 1 & 2 and units 3 & 4).
India to Grow Installed Nuclear Power Capacity to 3x by FY-32
India currently has an installed nuclear power generation capacity of 8.18 GW, constituted by 24 nuclear reactors. The government has set a target to achieve 22.48 GW of installed nuclear power generation capacity by FY-32, which is almost 3x the current figure. Kaiga units 5 & 6, along with the other PWHRs being developed in fleet mode will collectively add 7 GW of power generation capability, making them of great national importance.
Apart from this target for FY-32, the Government has set a long-term target of attaining 100 GW of installed nuclear power generation capacity by 2047.
About Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd.: Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd. was established in 1989 as Megha Engineering Enterprises. The company started off with building pipelines for municipal projects, and has since grown to be a multi-sector infrastructure company.