Key facts
- India targets 100 GW nuclear capacity by 2047, up from ~7,500 MW today
- Nuclear Energy Mission announced in Union Budget supports small modular reactors
- Atomic Energy Act amended to allow greater private sector participation
- Nuclear seen as key to India's 500 GW non-fossil fuel target by 2030
India is entering a fresh phase in its civilian nuclear programme, with the government signalling new momentum in a sector it views as critical to the country's long-term energy security and clean power ambitions, according to a PIB release.
The announcement comes at a pivotal moment: India has committed to achieving net-zero emissions by 2070 and has set an interim target of 500 GW of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030. Nuclear power, with its ability to provide round-the-clock baseload electricity without carbon emissions, is seen as an indispensable part of that transition — particularly as India's electricity demand is projected to more than double over the next two decades.
The government has been laying groundwork on multiple fronts. The Nuclear Energy Mission, announced in the Union Budget earlier this year, earmarked support for the development of small modular reactors (SMRs), and Parliament passed amendments to the Atomic Energy Act to allow greater private sector participation — a structural change that had been blocked for decades by the sector's state-monopoly framework.
India currently operates around 7,500 MW of nuclear capacity, a fraction of its total installed power base. The ambition is to expand this to 100 GW by 2047 — a target that would require an unprecedented acceleration in reactor construction, fuel supply, and regulatory throughput.
The PIB framing of this as a "new chapter" suggests a coordinated push from the government to signal seriousness of intent, both domestically and to international partners including France, the United States, and Russia, who are potential collaborators in India's reactor expansion programme.