Lok Sabha Question No. 1939 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-03-07
Subject: Utilization of Nuclear Materials
Ministry: ATOMIC ENERGY
Asked by: RAMSINH PATALYABHAI RATHWA

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA DEPARTMENT OF ATOMIC ENERGY

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1939 TO BE ANSWERED ON 07.03.2018

## UTILIZATION OF NUCLEAR MATERIALS

1939.  SHRIRAMSINH RATHWA:

Will the PRIME MINISTER be pleased to state:

- (a) the quantum of nuclear material utilized in power production and other sectors during each of the last three years, nuclear power plant-wise and sector-wise;
- (b) the action plan and the target for the supply and usage of nuclear energy sources in the next three years;
- (c) the names and quantum of sources of indigenous atomic energy including thorium; and
- (d) the  status  of  the  technology  developed  in  the  country  to  utilize  the  aforesaid sources?

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES & PENSIONS AND PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE (Dr. JITENDRA SINGH) :

- (a) The approximate requirements of atomic fuel/uranium for Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs) are as follows:

|   Unit Capacity (MW) |   Annual requirement at 85% Capacity Factor (tons UO 2 ) |
|----------------------|----------------------------------------------------------|
|                  220 |                                                       45 |
|                  540 |                                                      100 |
|                  700 |                                                      125 |

The approximate requirements of atomic fuel/uranium for Light Water Reactors (LWRs) currently in operation are as given below:

|   Unit Capacity(MW) | Annual Fuel Requirement (tons, low enriched uranium)   |
|---------------------|--------------------------------------------------------|
|                 160 | 6 (at 85% CF)                                          |
|                1000 | 25 (at 90% CF)                                         |

- (b) To augment  indigenous resources of uranium and thorium, Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research (AMD), a constituent unit of Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) has taken measures to augment domestic uranium and thorium resources by state-of-the-art, integrated, multi-disciplinary exploration utilising remote sensing, heliborne / ground geophysical survey, geological, radiometric and geochemical surveys and drilling with high-tech hydrostatic rigs and 'sonic' drill rigs in several productive, prospective and potential areas of the country. Laboratories have been upgraded with modern, high-tech instruments and equipment to provide rapid and accurate analytical support to field investigations.

Thorium resources are contained in the mineral monazite, which occurs in association  with  other  Beach  Sand  Minerals  (BSM)  like  ilmenite,  leucoxene,  rutile (titanium  minerals),  zircon  (zirconium  mineral),  garnet  and  sillimanite  (industrial minerals).

- (c) The  status of  uranium  and  thorium (monazite) resources  as  on  January, 2018  is given in Annexure 1 and Annexure 2.
- (d) Research & Development on Thorium utilisation continues to be a high priority R&D area of the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE). Thorium ( 232 Th) is a fertile material, which is required to be converted into a fissile material ( 233 U) through irradiation in a nuclear reactor. Spent fuel thus produced, is required to be reprocessed to recover 233 U,  thereafter  fuel  in  the  desired  properties  is  produced  using  this 233 U.  In  this regard,  necessary  R&D  is  being  carried  out.  Some  important  highlights  of  these achievements and activities are the following:
- i) Thorium Oxide (Thoria) pellets contained in bundles have been used in the initial cores  of  our  operating  Pressurised  Heavy  Water  Reactors  (PHWRs)  and valuable  experience  has  been  generated  in  operation  and  re-use  of  this irradiated thorium fuel.
- ii) The  irradiated  Thoria  pins  from  research  reactors  have  been  reprocessed  to obtain Uranium 233. The recovered Uranium 233 has been fabricated as fuel for the  30  kW  (thermal)  KAMINI  reactor.  This  is  the  only  reactor  in  the  world operating with Uranium 233 fuel.
- iii) The technologies for fabrication of Thoria based fuel pellets, carrying Uranium233, have been established.

- iv) Studies have been also carried out to use Thorium in different types of reactors with regard to fuel management, reactor control and fuel utilisation.
- v) Indigenous  efforts  towards  development  and  demonstration  of  Thorium-based reactor  technology  are  well  underway  with  BARC-designed  Advanced  Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR, 300 MWe). This 300 MWe reactor using thorium based fuel will serve as a technology demonstrator not only for the thorium fuel cycle technologies, but also for several advanced passive safety features.
- vi) A Critical Facility for Advanced Heavy Water Reactor was commissioned in 2008 at Trombay and is being used since then for carrying out experiments to further validate the physics design features of AHWR.

In  addition,  the  Department  has  an  active  programme  for  utilisation  of  Thorium  in High  Temperature  Reactors,  Molten  Salt  Breeder  Reactor  and  Accelerator  Driven Sub-critical  System.  Various  technologies,  fuels,  and  materials  are  also  being developed for these innovative reactors and advanced energy systems.

The  Pressurised  Heavy  Water  Reactor  (PHWR)  technology  to  utilise  the  domestic uranium reserves has been developed indigenously and it has attained maturity.

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Annexure 1: Status of Uranium Resources :

| State            | Uranium Reserves   | Uranium Reserves   |
|------------------|--------------------|--------------------|
|                  | U 3 O 8 (tonne)    | U (tonne)          |
| Andhra Pradesh   | 1,44,541           | 1,22,570           |
| Telangana        | 18,550             | 15,731             |
| Jharkhand        | 67,712             | 57,420             |
| Meghalaya        | 23,040             | 19,538             |
| Rajasthan        | 9,421              | 7,989              |
| Karnataka        | 4,682              | 3,970              |
| Chattisgarh      | 3,986              | 3,380              |
| Uttar Pradesh    | 785                | 666                |
| Uttarakhand      | 100                | 85                 |
| Himachal Pradesh | 784                | 665                |
| Maharashtra      | 355                | 301                |
| Total            | 2,73,956           | 2,32,315           |

Annexure 2 : Status of monazite resources

| State          |   No. of deposits |   Resource (million tonne) |
|----------------|-------------------|----------------------------|
| Odisha         |                10 |                      3.06  |
| Andhra Pradesh |                26 |                      3.69  |
| Tamil Nadu     |                51 |                      2.46  |
| Kerala         |                35 |                      1.84  |
| West Bengal    |                 1 |                      1.2   |
| Jharkhand      |                 1 |                      0.21  |
| Maharashtra    |                 3 |                      0.004 |
| Gujarat        |                 1 |                      0.003 |
| Total          |               128 |                     12.467 |

Monazite in the beach placer sands contains about 9-10% thorium oxide (ThO2). The monazite  resource  (12.47  million  tonne)  contains  approximately  0.98  million  tonne thorium metal (Th) or approximately 1.12 million tonne ThO2.

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