Energy & Nuclear
Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor reaches criticality
6 April 2026BHAVINI / IGCAR (DAE)Kalpakkam (Tamil Nadu)Tamil Nadu
2026
India's first fast breeder reactor (500 MWe) began a sustained chain reaction, entering stage two of its nuclear plan.
- Dated
- 2026
- As scholars put it
- 6 April 2026
- Originator
- BHAVINI / IGCAR (DAE)
- Source text
- Kalpakkam (Tamil Nadu)
- Region
- Tamil Nadu
- Discipline
- Energy & Nuclear
- Evidence
- Documented
- Confidence
- High
- Verification
- Verified-web
Meanwhile in the West
Russia is the only other country operating a commercial fast breeder.
Fair to say
About 16 years late and over twice the sanctioned cost; full power and fuel reprocessing are still years away.
Path to modern innovation
A bridge to using India's large thorium reserves.
Builds on
1954Transmission
Indigenously designed and built.
References
- 1PIB (Apr 2026)
- 2Physics World
Further reading
Corrections and additional sources: edit IND-347 on GitHub.