India’s Atomic Energy Regulatory Board will decide on the duration of the operational license to be given to the first unit of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KNPP) after considering results of various technological tests and reports. “Based on the reports generated, it will be decided whether the unit will be given a one year or five year operational license,” said SS Bajaj, chairman, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB).

India’s atomic power plant operator Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) is setting up the KNPP at Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu’s Tirunelveli district, with two Russian made VVER 1,000 reactors. The first unit is in the advanced stage of commissioning, with AERB giving its nod on August 10 to load 163 of enriched uranium fuel bundles in the reactor between September 11 and 15.