Nuclear Fuel Complex(NFC)

Dr. Homi Jehangir Bhabha conceived the Nuclear Program in India. Dr. Bhabha established the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) for carrying out nuclear science research in 1945 and the Atomic Energy Commission was constituted in 1948. To intensify the effort to exploit nuclear energy for the benefit of the nation, Dr. Bhabha established the Atomic Energy Establishment, (AEET), Trombay, Mumbai in January 1954. AEET was subsequently renamed as Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC). Initial lab-scale experiments to make nuclear fuel were conducted at BARC.

As the nuclear power program for the country was being formulated, it was clearly envisaged to have self-reliance in a complete nuclear fuel cycle. Hence it was planned to set up the required facilities with regard to fuel, heavy water, and fuel reprocessing within the country. The fuel requirement for the power program required an industrial scale of operation and the area in Trombay was not sufficient. So it was decided to go outside Trombay. A team of senior scientists was constituted to visit Bangalore, Madras, and Hyderabad to search for a suitable site. The senior committee, after detailed scrutiny, recommended to Dr. Bhabha the choice of Hyderabad for the location of the Nuclear Fuel Complex. The Andhra Pradesh Government allotted land to the Department of Atomic in the year 1968. In 1968, the NFC Board was created under the Chairmanship of Dr. Vikram Sarabhai for setting up of few production plants, common facilities, and any other facility required at Hyderabad. Also, the objective of setting up of NFC was to create an organization to meet the future requirements of fuel for the nuclear power program.

Though NFC is one of the bright examples of successful transfer of technology from laboratory scale to large scale production, owing to the transfer of the very personnel conducting the R&D at BARC, it is also a testimony that upscaling the large scale without any modeling is not without problems. All facilities connected with nuclear fuel starting from uranium concentrate and zircon were kept together in one place and under one organization so that there are no interfaces posing difficult co-ordination problems. Almost every plant of NFC has undergone changes from its original concept. It is by dint of innovative ideas the plant capacities were progressively increased and NFC is seen at its present stage. NFC is proud to be a tall example of self-reliance and Make In India.