Lok Sabha Question No. 1316 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-07-25
Subject: Uranium Production
Ministry: ATOMIC ENERGY
Asked by: PANKAJ CHOWDHARY, VISHNU DAYAL RAM

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA DEPARTMENT OF ATOMIC ENERGY

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1316

TO BE ANSWERED ON 25.07.2018

## URANIUM  PRODUCTION

## 1316.  SHRI PANKAJ CHAUDHARY :

SHRI VISHNU DAYAL RAM :

Will the PRIME MINISTER be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government  is contemplating any scheme  to increase the production of Uranium in the country and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) the quantum of uranium in metric tonnes produced in the country and its annual requirement for production of atomic energy;
- (c) the  progress  made  so  far  with  regard  to  the  possibility  of  finding  uranium deposits in the country, State/UT-wise especially in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh;
- (d) the quantum of requirement of uranium being met through the uranium produced in the country;
- (e) the quantum of uranium imported from foreign countries along with the names of those countries from which import of uranium is made;
- (f) the names  of  the  various  sectors and  areas  in  which  uranium  is  being produced/utilized in the country; and
- (g) whether the  Government  has formulated  any  scheme to  become  self-reliant  in the case of uranium and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

THE  MINISTER  OF  STATE  FOR  PERSONNEL,  PUBLIC  GRIEVANCES  AND PENSIONS AND PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE (DR. JITENDRA SINGH)\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

- (a) Yes, Sir.  Uranium Corporation of India Ltd. (UCIL), a Public Sector Undertaking under  this  Department  has  made  a  detailed  plan  in  line  with  Department  of Atomic Energy (DAE)'s vision to achieve self sufficiency in  uranium production

with nearly ten-fold rise in next 15 years (by 2031-32). The outlined plan includes maintaining sustained production from existing facilities through debottlenecking projects,  capacity  expansion  of  some  existing  units  and  construction  of  new production centers (mines and plants) in different parts of the country. Considering  the  resources  already  identified  in  different  geological  basins  by Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research (AMD), a constituent unit  of  this  Department,  UCIL's  major  production  centers  are  envisaged  in Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, Rajasthan and Meghalaya. Capacity  expansion  and  debottlenecking  activities  in  existing  Singhbhum  and Tummalapalle  operations  have  already  been  taken  up.    UCIL  has  signed agreements with AMD for exploratory mining at Rohil in Rajasthan, SingridungriBanadungri  in  Jharkhand  and  Peddagattu  in  Telangana.  Exploratory  mining  at Rohil has started.

- (b) It    is    not    in    the    public    interest    to  disclose  the  quantity  of  production  of uranium.  The  approximate  requirements  of  uranium  for  Pressurized  Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs) are given below:

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

The approximate requirements of uranium for Light Water Reactors (LWRs) are as given below:

|   Unit Capacity (MW) | Annual requirement at 85%/90% Capacity Factor (tons low enriched uranium)   |
|----------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|                  160 | 6(at 85% CF)                                                                |
|                 1000 | 25 (at 90% CF)                                                              |

- (c) AMD  has  carried  out  exploration  and  prospecting  for  uranium  deposits  in  a number  of  prospective  geological  domains  of  the  country.  AMD  has  so  far established 3,00,034 tonne (t) in situ U3O8 (2,54,429 t U) as on May, 2018 in forty four (44) low-grade uranium deposits in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Jharkhand, Meghalaya,  Rajasthan,  Karnataka,  Chhattisgarh,  Uttar  Pradesh,  Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Maharashtra.

In  Uttar  Pradesh,  a  low-grade  and  small  tonnage  metamorphite-type  uranium deposit  (785  tonne  uranium  oxide)  has  been  identified  at  Naktu  in  Sonbhadra district.

In Madhya Pradesh, detailed exploration including drilling are in the preliminary stage in Dharangmau - Kachhar and Khapa - Jhapri - Kalapani areas in Betul district  to  identify  sandstone-type  uranium  mineralisation  in  Satpura  Gondwana Basin.

- (d) It is not in the public interest to disclose the quantity of production of uranium.
- (e) Quantum of uranium imported from foreign countries is as  given below:
- (f) It is not in the public interest to disclose the indigenous production of uranium.
- (g)     Yes, Sir.   The Government has taken measures to augment domestic uranium supply  by  state-of-the-art,  integrated,  multi-disciplinary  exploration  in  several prospective and potential geological domains in various parts of the country and opening of new mines and processing facilities.

|   Sr. No. | Agency Source/ Country               | Description                              |   Quantity received till date in MTU |
|-----------|--------------------------------------|------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------|
|         1 | M/s. JSC TVEL, Russia                | Fuel Pellets of Natural Uranium Di-oxide |                             2005.92  |
|         2 | M/s. JSC TVEL, Russia                | Enriched Uranium Fuel Pellets            |                              100.451 |
|         3 | M/s. JSC NAC Kazatomprom, Kazakhstan | Uranium Ore Concentrate                  |                             2095.92  |
|         4 | M/s. Areva, France                   | Uranium Ore Concentrate                  |                              299.891 |

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