SMRs FOR DEFENCE MANUFACTURING AND DATA CENTRE OPERATION
India’s vision of becoming a Viksit Bharat by 2047 and achieving Net Zero by 2070 places the transformation of the power sector at the centre of national development. As the country pursues rapid economic growth alongside long-term decarbonisation, the need for clean, reliable, resilient and strategically secure energy systems has become increasingly critical.
Recognising this, the Government of India is advancing a diversified energy strategy that combines renewable energy, grid modernisation, storage technologies and clean firm power. Within this framework, nuclear energy — particularly advanced reactors and Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) — is emerging as a key pillar for delivering continuous, low-carbon baseload electricity to support industrial growth, strategic infrastructure and energy security.
The Government’s proposed Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Act, 2025 seeks to modernise India’s nuclear governance framework by streamlining licensing, strengthening regulatory oversight, clarifying liability provisions and enabling calibrated private sector participation. Together with the Nuclear Energy Mission announced in the Union Budget 2025–26, India aims to accelerate indigenous nuclear innovation and scale nuclear capacity to 100 GW by 2047.
India has already made significant progress in advanced nuclear technologies through indigenous initiatives such as:
• Bharat Small Modular Reactor (BSMR-200)
• SMR-55
• High-temperature gas-cooled reactors for hydrogen generation
• The 500 MWe Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR), which achieved first criticality in 2026
At the same time, defence manufacturing and digital infrastructure have emerged as critical strategic sectors. India’s defence production has grown rapidly under the Make in India initiative, while the country’s data centre capacity has expanded nearly fourfold since 2020, driven by AI growth, hyperscale computing and digital transformation.
These sectors share several common characteristics:
- High and continuous power demand
- Zero tolerance for power disruptions
- Increasing pressure to decarbonise operations
- Concentrated industrial and digital infrastructure clusters
With electricity demand from AI and large-scale data centres projected to rise sharply over the coming decade, SMRs offer a potential solution through:
• Reliable round-the-clock low-carbon power
• Modular and scalable deployment
• Enhanced safety systems
• On-site or near-site captive generation
• Integration with renewable energy systems
Against this backdrop, Chintan Research Foundation (CRF) and Finovista are convening a high-level Roundtable on Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) for Defence Manufacturing and Data Centre Operations.
The roundtable will bring together policymakers, industry leaders, technology developers, defence stakeholders, data centre operators, financial institutions and energy experts to explore the role of advanced nuclear technologies in India’s strategic infrastructure future.
The discussions will focus on:
• The role of SMRs and advanced nuclear systems in delivering secure, reliable and clean baseload power
• Integration of nuclear energy with renewables, storage and grid modernisation
• Applicability of SMRs for defence industrial corridors and hyperscale data centre hubs
• International best practices in deployment, regulation, financing and safety
• Sustainability considerations including energy demand, land use, water use and climate resilience
• Regulatory and institutional frameworks under the SHANTI Act
• Pilot deployment pathways, financing mechanisms and partnership models for scalable implementation
The roundtable aims to facilitate informed dialogue on the opportunities, trade-offs and policy pathways necessary to align advanced nuclear technologies with India’s strategic, economic and climate objectives.
By connecting India’s net-zero ambitions, nuclear sector reforms and the growing energy requirements of defence and digital infrastructure, the discussion seeks to identify actionable pathways that strengthen energy security, industrial competitiveness and long-term strategic resilience.