India targets 100 GW nuclear capacity by 2047

India’s BJP Rajya Sabha MP Harsh Vardhan Shringla said his country aims to expand its nuclear energy capacity to 100 gigawatts by 2047, as a US executive nuclear delegation visited the country.

Speaking on Monday (18 May), Shringla highlighted the recent passage of the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Act, 2025, calling it the foundation for the planned expansion.

“In December, Parliament approved the ‘SHANTI Bill,’ which subsequently became the SHANTI Act. This Act created a framework under which both domestic and foreign investment can be deployed in the nuclear energy sector. Our goal is to scale up nuclear capacity from 8.8 gigawatts to 100 gigawatts by 2047,” he said.

Shringla said India’s fast-growing economy required reliable baseload power in addition to renewable energy sources, adding that nuclear energy was uniquely positioned to meet that need.

“Our economy is growing rapidly; therefore, we require not only renewable energy but also a dependable baseload capacity, which nuclear energy can provide,” he said.

Maria Korsnick, President and CEO of the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), said the SHANTI Act had “opened the door for a new day,” reshaping prospects for US-India civil nuclear cooperation.

Enacted as a major legislative reform, the SHANTI Act is reported to have replaced earlier frameworks including the Atomic Energy Act of 1962 and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act of 2010, allowing private sector participation in nuclear energy for the first time.

Speaking to ANI, Korsnick said the visiting executive trade mission—jointly hosted by NEI and the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF)—aimed to help American companies understand India’s clean energy roadmap and the new investment environment.

She said the 2005 India-US civil nuclear agreement had been a landmark step, but commercial progress had stalled for years due to unresolved liability issues.

“Back in 2005, it was a step forward, but the nuclear liability issue was not resolved, and for 20 years we did not make significant progress,” she said.

Korsnick added that the SHANTI Act marked a turning point, while also noting advancements in reactor technology since the earlier agreement.

“It wasn’t just large reactors anymore—we now have large, medium, small and advanced reactor designs in different forms,” she said.

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