Indian parliament approves landmark atomic energy bill to open nuclear power to private sector

NEW DELHI, Dec 19 (Reuters) - India's parliament approved on Thursday a landmark atomic energy bill that allows private and foreign companies to enter the nuclear power sector, as the energy-hungry country targets a tenfold jump in nuclear power capacity to 100 gigawatts by 2047.

The legislation marks a major shift for the sector which has so far been tightly controlled by the state.

State-run Nuclear Power Corporation of India owns and operates the country's fleet of nuclear power plants that have a total capacity of 8.8 gigawatts.

Reuters reported last year that India was looking to invite domestic private firms such as Tata Power (TTPW.NS), opens new tab, Adani Power (ADAN.NS), opens new tab and Reliance Industries (RELI.NS), opens new tab to invest about $26 billion in the sector.

Under the new law, private companies would need to obtain licences to operate nuclear power plants, while foreign firms can participate through partnerships with Indian companies.