Adani Power has announced the formation of a new subsidiary focused on nuclear energy, marking its entry into India’s evolving atomic power landscape as the government opens the sector to private participation.
In a filing to the exchanges, Adani Power said that the newly-incorporated entity, Adani Atomic Energy Limited, will generate, transmit and distribute electricity derived from nuclear or atomic energy. The company has been set up as a wholly owned subsidiary with an initial investment of ₹5 lakh, according to the filing.
The move comes amid a broader policy push by the Centre to expand private-sector involvement in nuclear power following the passage of the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Act, 2025.
The legislation replaces the decades-old Atomic Energy Act of 1962 and creates a framework to allow private companies to participate across the nuclear value chain as India targets 100 GW of nuclear capacity by 2047.
The law also grants statutory status to the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, strengthening oversight while introducing a comprehensive licensing regime covering plant construction, ownership, operation and decommissioning, as well as fuel fabrication, enrichment (within notified limits), and the transport and storage of nuclear materials. Private firms, joint ventures and other approved entities are now eligible to apply for licences — a significant shift from the earlier state-dominated model.
Part of the Adani Group, Adani Power is currently India’s largest private thermal power producer. The company operates a total generation capacity of 18,110 MW across thermal plants in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Tamil Nadu, along with a 40 MW solar project in Gujarat.
Policy think tank NITI Aayog has projected a sharp rise in India’s nuclear energy footprint in its report Scenarios Towards Viksit Bharat and Net Zero. The study estimates installed nuclear capacity could grow from about 8.8 GW at present to more than 300 GW by 2070, driven in part by the adoption of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), which enable flexible and decentralised deployment.
The SHANTI framework also regulates the import and export of nuclear fuel, prescribed equipment, technology and software tied to nuclear activities, while empowering the Central Government to notify additional licensable areas as the sector evolves.
Source: Business Today