January 12: For the fourth year in succession, nuclear power generation in the country continued to improve its performance. The year 1998 saw the nuclear power stations not only generating the highest monthly generation to date - over 1160 million units - but also the highest in any calendar year of nearly 11,400 milion units.Of the ten nuclear power reactors, six performed at capacity factors in the range of 77 per cent to 90 per cent and two units at capacity factors 65 per cent 70 per cent. This gives an average of about 75 per cent capacity factor. Another major achievement during the year was the successful replacement of coolant channels at the second unit of the Rajasthan station - which was a highly sophisticated and technological demanding project.As a result of the excellent performance of the nuclear power stations, Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) is estimated to have earned a profit of about Rs 224 crore during the first three quarters of the financial year 1998-99 asagainst Rs 130 crore in the corresponding period last year.However, the dues owed by the State Electricity Boards to the NPCIL - which designs, constructs and operates the country's nuclear power reactors - is a cause of concern. These dues total to about Rs 2420 crore which is more than the cost of the Kaiga (2x220 Mw) project under construction.
