India, Russia sign deal on power generating units at nuclear power plant

India and Russia signed "some very important" agreements related to the construction of additional power generating units in Tamil Nadu's Kudankulam nuclear power plant, said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar during his five-day trip to Moscow. This announcement was made after comprehensive and productive talks between Jaishankar and Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov on bilateral economic cooperation.

The EAM and Manturov signed several agreements on nuclear power and in areas of medicines, pharmaceutical substances and medical devices during their bilateral meeting. "Today, in my presence and that of Deputy Prime Minister Manturov, we signed some very important agreements pertaining to the future units of the Kudankulam nuclear project," Jaishankar said while addressing the Indian diaspora.

Taking to X, the minister said that the meeting with Manturov noted



significant progress in trade, finance, connectivity, energy, civil aviation and nuclear domains. "Appreciated the greater focus on exploring new opportunities. Discussed making our cooperation more balanced and sustainable in different dimensions," he added.

The Kudankulam nuclear power plant currently being built in Tamil Nadu with the technical assistance of Russia began construction in March 2002. The first power unit of the nuclear power plant began operating in February 2016 with a design capacity of 1,000 MW and is expected to start operating at full capacity in 2027, according to Russian media.

The two ministers also finalised the program of cooperation on Russian Far East and are expected to hold an early meeting of EaEU-India (Eurasian Economic Zone) FTA negotiators. Jaishankar also pledged to jointly organise connectivity events across land and maritime corridors.