After SHANTI Bill, US Nuclear Giants Set Sights on India

America’s nuclear giants make a move for the Indian nuclear industry, after the SHANTI Bill, the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India, was passed in December 2025.

The 20-member American delegation has boarded a plane to New Delhi and will be visiting Delhi and Mumbai from May 18 to 21. “The goal is to understand how American and Indian companies can further collaborate to support project development, strengthen supply chains, and build long-term commercial partnerships,” the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) said.

The group was briefed by Energy Secretary Chris Wright before departure, and the group represents the United States' most commercially ready nuclear players. This move by the US focuses on exploring areas of cooperation after the SHANTI Bill opened up the tightly controlled nuclear sector for private players.

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The SHANTI Bill was introduced in Lok Sabha in 2025. The major provision of this bill focuses on opening its nuclear power plant construction and operation to private Indian companies, joint ventures, and foreign entities for the first time.

This bill repealed both the Atomic Energy Act of 1962 and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act of 2010, which had kept international nuclear investments frozen for a very long time.

The Liability Barrier That Blocked Deals for 15 Years

The Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act of 2010 was one of the major obstacles for foreign nuclear firms in India. Its supplier liability clause allowed operators a right of recourse against equipment manufacturers directly for damages in the event of a nuclear accident. This provision contradicted international nuclear liability conventions and made deal structuring commercially unviable for American, French, and other Western firms.

The SHANTI Bill removes this supplier liability entirely. Under the new framework, operators alone bear responsibility for compensation, with liability capped and linked to installed plant capacity rather than the extent of damage.

Behind this bill, India aims to expand its nuclear capacity from 8.8 GW to 22 GW by 2032 and 100 GW by 2047.

A Market Now Open for the First Time

This SHANTI Bill also ends the monopoly of NPCIL in the nuclear energy sector. It also grants statutory independence to the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, making it accountable to Parliament. The government retains control over sensitive areas — nuclear fuel production, heavy water manufacturing, and radioactive waste management — but the commercial space for private and foreign players has expanded dramatically.

The visiting US delegation, organized by Washington-based Nuclear Energy Institute, the lobby group for America’s commercial nuclear industry, and the US India Strategic Partnership Forum, is expected to meet the External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, Power Minister Manohar Lal, and the chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat.

This mission has two major agendas. To take stock of India’s nuclear energy landscape, less than six months after the SHANTI Bill, and to communicate the American industry's interest in India’s nuclear energy ambitions.

For the American nuclear industry, which had no access to the Indian nuclear energy sector due to stringent laws, the SHANTI BILL gives a new ticket to enter India’s nuclear energy sector.