Small Modular Reactors are emerging as a centrepiece of Indo-French civil nuclear cooperation. Analyse.

The February 2025 "List of Outcomes" of PM Modi's France visit placed a Declaration of Intent on Small and Advanced Modular Reactors (SMR/AMR) at the heart of the civil nuclear basket [1], signalling a decisive shift from the stalled large-reactor model toward modular, scalable nuclear cooperation.

Why SMRs have become the pivot

• Jaitapur deadlock: the six-EPR project stalled on cost, liability and financing; SMRs offer a lighter, de-risked alternative [2].
• Energy transition: modular reactors suit India's 100 GW-by-2047 nuclear target and low-carbon goals, aligning with the Bharat SMR initiative.
• Co-design, co-production: the LoI enables joint design and manufacture, feeding India's Atmanirbhar nuclear supply chain rather than mere import [1].

Framework operationalising the shift

• Renewed DAE–CEA MoU and a GCNEP–INSTN implementing agreement anchor R&D and human-resource cooperation [2].
• Nested within the Horizon 2047 Roadmap, giving the partnership long-term strategic depth beyond defence.

Constraints tempering the promise

• SMR technology is globally pre-commercial; no French SMR is yet deployed, so timelines remain uncertain.
• India's Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010 and pending private-participation reforms still condition investment.
• Cooperation remains at intent stage, needing regulatory and financing follow-through.

SMRs thus reframe Indo-French nuclear ties from a single contested megaproject into a flexible, technology-led partnership. Converting this intent into deployable reactors—backed by liability reform and the India-France Year of Innovation 2026—can make clean, secure nuclear energy a durable pillar of the Strategic Partnership.