Two nuclear power units in Kudankulam not powering South now

The two 1,000 MW atomic power generation units of Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) at Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu account for the bulk of the 5,820 MW forced power plant shutdowns in the Southern states.

The two big atomic power plants are not generating power. On Friday afternoon, the first unit stopped operations while the second unit has not been operating since January 18.

According to Power System Operation Corporation Ltd (POSOCO) the first unit stopped on Friday afternoon for ‘reactor side maintenance’.

The second unit had stopped in January this year due to ‘hydrogen leak in stator’ and the tentative date of its restoration is April 7 this year. The power generated by the two units powers Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Puducherry.

India’s atomic power company, NPCIL is building four more plants – Units 3, 4, 5 and 6 – of 1,000 MW each in Kudankulam with Russian technology.