NALCO mulling setting up of nuclear power plant

Bhubaneswar: The state-owned National Aluminium Company (NALCO) is in talks with another public sector undertaking to set up a nuclear power plant in the country, an official said Sunday. The aluminium major is in talks with the Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) to set up the plant for which the exact location is yet not finalised. "We are interested to set up a power plant. It is better if it is a nuclear power plant. We have already given a proposal to NPCIL. We want to set up the power plant in joint venture. The partnership would 50:50. We have sought technical expertise to set up the power plant," NALCO Chairman and Managing Director C.R. Pradhan said. He said the aluminium behemoth has expressed interest in partnering NPCIL for a 1,500- megawatt power plant. "We want to set up the power plant which would be of 1,500 megawatt capacity," Pradhan added. NPCIL Chairman and Managing Director S.K. Jain had Friday hinted at entering into a joint venture with NALCO to set up a nuclear power plant. He was speaking on the sidelines of the India Electricity Summit 2009 in New Delhi. NALCO is the third public sector undertaking after National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) and Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) to have evinced interest in setting up a nuclear power plant along with NPCIL. NPCIL and NTPC signed a memorandum of understanding in February to start a joint venture company for setting up nuclear power plants.