Despite Historic Pact, U.S. Firms Are Hampered in Setting Up Reactors in India

Despite Historic Pact, U.S. Firms Are Hampered in Setting Up Reactors in India
Rama Lakshmi, The Washington PostIt took three years of diplomatic wrangling to get a controversial agreement signed late last year to allow India to participate in global civilian nuclear trade, but U.S. business executives now say there are more hurdles to overcome before they can start setting up reactors and selling fuel to India.

Editor's Note: This article correctly highlights some of the challenges that U.S. firms face in selling nuclear-related material, equipment and technology to India, but errs in a few ways. For example, GE and Westinghouse are unlikely to be chafing at the bit to sell reactors before India passes a nuclear liability law since that law should protect them from bankruptcy in the event of an accident. Second, although India has a uranium shortage, U.S. firms are not positioned, now or in the future, to help relieve that problem. India will likely purchase uranium from the big suppliers – Canada or Kazakhstan. Until light water reactors are built, India will have no need for foreign conversion, enrichment and fuel fabrication services because most of its reactors are indigenous heavy-water-moderated reactors that use natural uranium. The only American light water reactors – at Tarapur – have been recently resupplied with fuel by Russia. India may choose to hold up nuclear contracts until the U.S. Congress approves subsequent arrangements detailing consent rights to reprocess, but the urgency of its uranium shortage is not leverage over that process. In general, Russian and French nuclear vendors hold advantages over U.S. vendors in domestic and foreign sales because they are subsidized by their governments. The article should have noted that the U.S.-India Business Council covers a lot of other kinds of commerce, including defense sales, and it would be interesting to see if progress in other areas were being held up by lack of progress in nuclear commerce.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/20/AR2009012004049.html