Maharashtra in talks to set up India’s first thorium-based power plants

Mumbai: Maharashtra may become the first state to host thorium-based power plants, with the state government in advanced talks with the Department of Atomic Energy and Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) to set up two units.

The proposed plants will come up on land owned by MAHAGENCO, the state power utility, which is also part of the discussions. The deal, expected to be cleared in the coming months, envisages a 1,540 MW thorium plant and a 440 MW unit, replacing two ageing MAHAGENCO thermal power stations.

Maharashtra Institution for Transformation (MITRA), a state-government think tank, is helming the project that not just envisages clean energy but also cheaper power. "This is part of the energy transition plan to decarbonise the state in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision for a Viksit Bharat. This is also part of the state's roadmap for using nuclear energy for civilian use," said a state official"


According to sources, two 770 MW units would be put up in one district and two 220 MW units would be set up in another district. "The advantages of Thorium are many... it is safer and India has abundance of it and while it would be slightly costlier than setting up a thermal power plant, however, the running cost of a thorium power plant is much less than that of a thermal power plant. Our estimates are that power from this Thorium power plant would be priced at ₹3.50 per unit," said an official.

A thorium power plant is different from a conventional nuclear power plant based on uranium as Thorium-based power plants are safer as it has a lesser meltdown risk and operates at atmospheric pressure unlike pressurised uranium reactors.

While the Maharashtra government has signed an MoU with Russian state-owned ROSATOM for installing Thorium power plants, sources said that it is a stumbling block for Maharashtra to go ahead with that MoU as ROSATOM's Thorium plants are much costlier than that of the NPCIL plants.