Bharat Rakshak

Negi might be an Ass but he is definitely not an Asslick&r

To successfully reduce the risk of climate change we need to commericalise affordable, safe, flexible, long-lasting, low carbon sources of energy. We do not know yet if LFTRs fit the bill but they look extremely promising. It would be irresponsible to dismiss them out of hand before finding out. If the UK is serious about pursuing nuclear power, and it appears that it is, then we must include the pursuit of thorium power in this endeavour. On paper it looks like it may just save us.

Wasn't it Kakodkar who said recently that denial of ENR is betrayal of the clean exception given to India?

Therefore, India should refuse the offer of NSG membership even if it is offered to India in the absence of NPT membership so long as the NSG does not consider transfer of ENR technologies to India under proper safeguards as a legitimate requirement for the progress of Indian civilian nuclear programme.

By AFP

Published Monday, July 04, 2011

India has suggested that countries refusing to match nuclear reactor sales with technology transfers could be frozen out of one of the world's largest reactor markets.

The veiled threat came in a television interview broadcast Sunday, in which Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao was asked about new Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) guidelines on sensitive uranium enrichment and reprocessing technology.

The guidelines place restrictions on the sale of such technology to countries which, like nuclear-armed India, have not signed up to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Therefore, a transfer of ENR technology to India under the current environment can be made only if India agrees to such conditions i.e. allow for an examination by IAEA or mutually agreed experts to decide whether or not any similar ENR facility constructed by India subsequent to an ENR transfer is or is not based on the transferred technology i.e. whether or not the constructed facility should or should not be covered by IAEA safeguards. If India should consider such a condition a violation of its freedom to separate the civilian and military facilities and not agreeable to it, then transfers of ENR technologies to India may not be possible even if NSG does not bar ENR transfers.

Currently, NSG is considering on how to accommodate India as an NSG member. As NPT membership is also a criterion for admittance of new members to NSG, the NSG will, therefore, have to craft a language that will allow India to circumvent this requirement.

If, however, the NSG is unwilling to consider such a move then India may reconsider its approach to the issue of NSG membership and decline NSG’s offer of NSG membership

This exemption reflects the unique situation of India and constitutes a historical achievement. Therefore, in the French view, nothing in the existing and future guidelines shall be interpreted as detracting from that exemption or reducing the ambition of our bilateral cooperation

“This agreement aims at expanding our existing cooperation to ‘full civil nuclear cooperation for the development and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes’...,” he said. The ambassador emphasised that this “covers all aspects of a civilian nuclear program, including nuclear reactors, nuclear fuel cycle, nuclear fuel and nuclear waste management, and scientific cooperation”.

Finally the GOI understands how to play hardball. The French or Russians are surely likely to break from the pack for the $$$$. Once one breaks there will be a deluge.

Only with Baba Ramdev.

And the French reaction:

Nothing will detract from NSG's clean waiver to India: France

The decision on ENR was certainly a shifting of goalposts. But on hindsight maybe in a way it would be beneficial for now with it out in the open, it can be good benchmark to use for buying reactors. I think the US companies are going be a very unhappy lot!

The French reiteration is quite explicit - it only took one veiled threat by an outgoing Foreign Sec..Presumably the negotiations on Jaitapur are at their home stretch!

^^^^

Just to add to my post on ENR above, it's good that this decision by NSG has come before the negotiations with the French and Russian have been finalised.

The French reiteration is quite explicit - it only took one veiled threat by an outgoing Foreign Sec..Presumably the negotiations on Jaitapur are at their home stretch!

Irritation has built up in India over revised rules agreed on last month by the U.S., Russia, France and other major suppliers banning the sales of key technology and equipment that has civilian applications but also can be used to arm nuclear weapons. The agreement does not limit India's access to modern U.S. or other foreign-made reactors that are difficult to use for making fissile warhead material. The move, however, does appear to slam the door on any future attempts by New Delhi to expand its secretive nuclear arms program through foreign purchases of weapons-making technologies. India already can reprocess material from its fast-breeder reactor program to arm its nuclear missiles. So for New Delhi, the issue may be more a sense of injured pride at being rebuffed in strivings to stand shoulder to shoulder with the five "recognized" nuclear powers — the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France. In any case, the Asian giant is unhappy at what it sees an anti-Indian move backed by Washington and other suppliers — and is hinting that it may retaliate by cutting them out of any multibillion dollar reactor deals
"A betrayal," is how Anil Kakodar, the former chairman of India's Atomic Energy Commission, described the new rules. Washington does appear to be saying that the new restrictions permanently block transfers of enrichment and reprocessing equipment or know-how to all nations outside the 46-member Nuclear Suppliers Group — and that would include India. "The new NSG guidelines don't put the India exception in doubt," a senior U.S. official told the AP. But the official, who asked for anonymity for commenting on the sensitive topic, said they "reinforce the commitment of NSG members to prevent the transfer of items that could be used for weapons purposes." To access NSG equipment, all countries except the five formally recognized nuclear-armed powers normally must accept safeguards of the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency meant to ensure that their atomic programs are peaceful. If India makes good on veiled threats to retaliate by boycotting U.S. suppliers, the potential losses are huge. The U.S. nuclear industry could stand to lose billions of dollars in projected reactor sales as the country plans to quadruple its present 5,000 megawatts of nuclear power to 20,000 megawatts by 2020 — a project that could cost it as much as $250 billion (euro173 billion.)

aryl G. Kimball, who heads the Washington-based Arms Control Association calls it "an important, if overdue, decision to tighten its rules on the transfer of equipment and technology that can be used to make fissile material for nuclear weapons." The new NSG guidelines, "ensure that sensitive enrichment and reprocessing technologies will not be transferred to India and used in its unsafeguarded military program," says Kimball, whose organization shared a copy of the restricted text with the AP

The new NSG guidelines, "ensure that sensitive enrichment and reprocessing technologies will not be transferred to India and used in its unsafeguarded military program," says Kimball, whose organization shared a copy of the restricted text with the AP.

Does not it mean that ENRT can be transferred in a for safeguarded civilian purpose but not for un safeguarded places ? That there is not ban on ENRT transfer.

That should not be an issue as we can manage weapons plutonium on our own . Beside nothing transferred via this deal will be un safeguarded .

In any case, all trade under the NSG waiver is "civilian" - there is no "military trade" allowed! So anyone expecting that and deriding the nuke deal is basically creating hot gas...

The much-awaited ‘hot run' of the first of the 2 X 1,000 MWe reactors under construction as part of the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP) commenced last Friday, indicating that this nuclear reactor may attain criticality within another five months provided the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) is satisfied with the functioning of the hi-tech equipment of this reactor and gives its clearance on time.

Can we reprocess fuel from imported reactors in our own facilities? If not what will happen to the spent fuel ? To what stage of fuel disposal are safeguards likely ?

Is there any difference in agreement between different countries ?

What about imported fuel used in Indian reactors , can it be reprocessed in Indian facilities ?

If you are referring to 'legal' angle then as long as the said facility is under safeguards no issue whatsoever . However technically I do not know for maal coming out of imported reactors is not same as that of our PHWRs. If I am not wrong that is what import of ENR technology is supposed to address

For the nuclear deal to make sense to the US and others who pushed for it the fuel will have to be processed in India else the cost of operation will hit the roof (i.e. if some NPA comes with brilliant idea of shipping the fule from India to say Japan/France for ENR and then back as fuel bundle)

“This is obviously their agenda,” said Kakodkar