India opens nuclear sector to proven foreign technology as part of a sweeping legislative overhaul intended to end a decades-old state monopoly on atomic energy while keeping strategic control firmly with New Delhi. Under the new framework, foreign reactor designs and technology suppliers will be permitted to enter the country’s nuclear power industry only if their systems have already been established and demonstrated elsewhere, ensuring that expansion proceeds without compromising established safety standards.
What It Means That India Opens Nuclear Sector to Proven Foreign Technology
The shift stems from the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India Act, widely known as the SHANTI Act, which replaces the Atomic Energy Act of 1962 and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act of 2010 with a single, unified statute.
For the first time since independence, the law allows Indian companies, government-private joint ventures and authorised entities to obtain licences to build, own, operate and decommission nuclear power plants, ending the exclusive control previously held by the state-run Nuclear Power Corporation of India. Because India opens nuclear sector to proven foreign technology rather than experimental or unproven designs, only reactor systems with an established operating record abroad are expected to qualify for deployment, a safeguard officials have said is intended to reduce technical and safety risk during the transition to private participation.
Crucially, foreign-incorporated firms cannot themselves hold nuclear operating licences under the new regime. Instead, international technology partners, equipment suppliers and service providers may participate only through Indian-incorporated entities, meaning foreign expertise flows into the sector without foreign companies gaining direct operational control. The law also permits up to 49 percent foreign direct investment in select segments of the nuclear industry, a limit designed to attract capital and technical know-how while preserving majority Indian ownership over sensitive infrastructure.
Strict Regulatory Oversight Anchors the New Framework
Even as India opens nuclear sector to proven foreign technology, the legislation places significant emphasis on regulatory rigour. The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board has been granted statutory independence for the first time, giving it the legal authority to inspect, halt or shut down operations whenever safety standards are not met.
Previously constituted only through executive order, the regulator now sits on a similar legal footing to other major Indian institutions such as the Reserve Bank of India, a change that supporters say strengthens its ability to act independently of the very industry it oversees.
The law introduces a dual authorisation system, requiring nuclear facilities to secure both an operating licence and a separate safety authorisation covering every stage of activity, from construction and fuel handling through to eventual decommissioning and waste management. Officials overseeing the Department of Atomic Energy have repeatedly stressed that the guiding principle of the reform is “safety first, production next,” underscoring that the opening to private and foreign participation is not intended to loosen technical scrutiny.
Uranium mining, enrichment above notified thresholds and spent fuel reprocessing remain reserved exclusively for government entities, keeping the most sensitive parts of the nuclear fuel cycle outside private hands even as India opens nuclear sector to proven foreign technology in less sensitive areas such as equipment manufacturing and power generation.
Industry Response and the Road Ahead
Corporate interest has already begun to build around the reform, with major Indian conglomerates including Reliance Industries, Adani Power, Tata Power, JSW Energy, Jindal Steel and Power, and Hindalco Industries signalling intent to enter the nuclear power business. Several of these companies have proposed potential sites across states such as Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, anticipating the eventual notification of detailed licensing rules.
Tata Power’s chief executive has said the company is evaluating multiple locations for future projects but remains dependent on further regulatory clarity on licensing conditions, fuel sourcing and approval timelines before committing to firm plans.
The government has tied the opening of the nuclear sector to its broader ambition of expanding installed nuclear capacity roughly twelvefold, from around 8 gigawatts today to 100 gigawatts by 2047, as part of efforts to reduce reliance on coal and meet long-term climate commitments. Because India opens nuclear sector to proven foreign technology under a liability regime that caps operator exposure and removes automatic recourse against suppliers for design defects, the reform is also aimed at overcoming a long-standing obstacle that had discouraged international reactor vendors from engaging with the Indian market. Vendors from countries such as France, Russia and the United States have previously cited liability concerns as a barrier to supplying equipment and technology to Indian projects.
Conclusion
While the legislative changes are already in force, the practical rules governing private licensing remain at the drafting stage and have yet to be formally notified, meaning no applications from private operators can be accepted until that process is complete. Even so, the fact that India opens nuclear sector to proven foreign technology under a framework combining statutory regulatory independence, capped liability and restricted foreign ownership marks one of the most significant shifts in the country’s energy policy in decades, setting the stage for a new phase of investment as New Delhi works toward its long-term nuclear expansion goals.
Published in SouthAsianDesk, August 15th, 2026
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