RAS question
On 30 April 2026 the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board allowed major equipment erection at Kudankulam Units 5 and 6. These units are based on which reactor design and of what unit capacity?
Correct answer: (B) Russian VVER; 1,000 MW(e) each.
Kudankulam Units 5 and 6 are Russian VVER-design reactors, each with a capacity of 1,000 MW(e).
Explanation
The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board's permission of 30 April 2026 was specifically for major equipment erection at Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project Units 5 and 6. PIB states that the Kudankulam site has pressurised water reactors of VVER design, being established in technical collaboration with the Russian Federation, and that the site consists of six units of 1,000 MW(e) each. This directly fixes both parts of the answer: the reactor design is Russian VVER, and the unit capacity is 1,000 MW(e). The approval mentioned in the question concerns erecting major plant equipment such as the reactor pressure vessel, steam generators and coolant pumps; it does not change the reactor type or capacity.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Indian PHWRs of 700 MW(e) do not match the PIB description of Kudankulam as VVER-design pressurised water reactors of 1,000 MW(e) each.
- (C) The AP1000 option is wrong because PIB identifies the Kudankulam units as VVER reactors established with Russian technical collaboration, not American AP1000 units.
- (D) The EPR option is wrong because the cited PIB release gives the Kudankulam unit capacity as 1,000 MW(e) each, not 1,650 MW(e), and names the design as VVER.
Concept
This tests the Science and Technology syllabus link between nuclear reactor types, project locations and capacities. RAS can frame such current-affairs items around a regulatory approval, but the scoring clue is the stable project specification: Kudankulam equals Russian VVER, 1,000 MW(e).