Can Budget 2025 Supercharge India’s Nuclear Energy Ambitions?

As finance minister (FM) Nirmala Sitharaman stepped into the Parliament to deliver the Budget 2025-26 speech, little did anyone expect that she would come bearing gifts for India’s nuclear energy space. 

In her speech, the FM announced the establishment of a Nuclear Energy Mission with an outlay of INR 20,000 Cr. Under the Mission, the government will spearhead research and development (R&D) into at least five indigenously-developed small modular reactors (SMRs) by 2033. 

Small modular reactors are capable of generating up to 300 MWe…