The Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) announced that its new agreement with the Maharashtra State Power Generation Company Limited and the Maharashtra Institution for Transformation establishes a formal pathway for future collaboration on developing new nuclear power plants in the state.
Signed on 17 November, the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) will “proactively facilitate and extend cooperation,” Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said during the ceremony. Maharashtra is the first Indian state to enter into such an MoU, and Fadnavis affirmed full government support for upcoming initiatives.
According to the Chief Minister’s Office, the MoU focuses on four key objectives:
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Augment Non-Fossil Energy Capacity: Accelerate Maharashtra’s transition to clean, reliable, large-scale nuclear power generation.
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Technology Collaboration: Enable the design, development, and commissioning of new nuclear plants using safe, sustainable, and economically viable technologies aligned with guidelines from the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and the Department of Atomic Energy.
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Make in Maharashtra: Explore creation of a reactor assembly line to strengthen local manufacturing, enhance self-reliance, and boost the state’s industrial ecosystem.
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Institutional Facilitation: Ensure streamlined policy support and regulatory coordination through the Maharashtra Institution for Transformation and the state’s Energy Department.
Fadnavis noted that clean energy has become “the most important fuel” for powering India’s fast-growing data centre ecosystem. With Maharashtra hosting 50–60% of the country’s data capacity, nuclear energy will play a strategic role, he said, adding that the state “will benefit from NPCIL’s vast experience” and that the government will offer full cooperation.
Maharashtra is already home to several major nuclear sites, including Jaitapur — proposed for six French-designed EPR units with a combined 9.6 GWe capacity, which would make it the world’s largest nuclear power plant. The state also hosts India’s oldest operating reactors at Tarapur, including two boiling water reactors commissioned in 1969 and two pressurised heavy water reactors.
NPCIL said the partnership reinforces its commitment to delivering safe, reliable, and sustainable nuclear power, supporting India’s long-term clean energy and energy security goals.