Additive Manufacturing: Unlocking Multi-Billion-Dollar Opportunities in India’s 100 GW Nuclear Expansion
India stands at the threshold of a nuclear transformation. As the country accelerates its push toward energy security and a low-carbon future, the nuclear sector is emerging as both a strategic priority and a high-value opportunity for innovation. Challenges such as aging infrastructure, costly project timelines, and complex supply chains demand solutions that combine cutting-edge technology with domestic expertise. In this context, Additive Manufacturing (AM) offers a game-changing approach—enabling precision, efficiency, and flexibility in component production. With global players already leveraging AM in aerospace and advanced energy sectors, India has the chance to harness this technology not only to modernize its nuclear fleet but also to position itself as a leader in high-tech nuclear manufacturing.
The Role of AM in India’s Strategic Objectives
India’s ambitious plan to achieve 100 GW of nuclear power capacity by 2047—a central pillar of the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision and the Net Zero 2070 commitment—makes advanced manufacturing technologies like AM indispensable. Meeting this target will require adding over 4 GW of nuclear capacity annually for the next two decades, supported by the development of indigenous reactors and the Rs. 20,000 crore Nuclear Energy Mission. This massive pipeline ensures sustained demand for innovative manufacturing solutions.
AM aligns directly with India’s nuclear objectives. By cutting lead times and minimizing material waste, it lowers costs and accelerates project delivery, addressing one of the sector’s most persistent challenges: capital overruns. It also strengthens supply chain independence by enabling domestic production of complex, high-value components, reducing reliance on foreign vendors while supporting the government’s push to broaden its base of nuclear equipment suppliers.
Equally important is AM’s integration with India’s three-stage nuclear program, conceived by Homi Bhabha to utilize the nation’s vast thorium reserves. In the first stage, AM can provide spare parts for Pressurized Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs), including the 700 MWe IPHWRs, mitigating obsolescence risks. In the second stage, it offers solutions for the highly specialized components of
Fast Breeder Reactors (such as the PFBR 500 MWe), from steam generators to critical systems. For the third stage, focused on thorium-based designs like the AHWR and Molten Salt Reactors (MSRs), AM can accelerate R&D and enable complex prototype manufacturing.
The synergy is even clearer with Small Modular Reactors (SMRs). Designed for compactness and modularity, SMRs benefit directly from AM’s flexibility, rapid prototyping, and capacity to deliver customized parts. With the government’s push for SMRs under the Nuclear Energy Mission—and its decision to invite private participation in projects such as Bharat Small Reactors (BSRs)—a new ecosystem is emerging where private companies can provide advanced manufacturing services alongside NPCIL. This shift marks a strategic turning point, positioning AM as a catalyst for India’s nuclear growth and a foundation for deeper public–private collaboration
The Strategic Convergence: India’s Market and Policy Landscape
The role of AM in India’s nuclear sector is being shaped by a rare convergence of market momentum and supportive policy. Globally, the AM market is expanding rapidly, with energy and nuclear emerging as prime growth areas because of their reliance on low-volume, high-complexity, and high-cost components—precisely where AM delivers the greatest value. Within this global trajectory, India’s domestic AM market is on a steep rise, projected to reach $1.79 billion by 2030 with a CAGR of 28.1%, indicating that the underlying ecosystem is maturing quickly and creating fertile ground for nuclear-specific applications.
Complementing this market growth, India’s policy environment provides strong enablers. Initiatives such as Make in India and the National Strategy for Additive Manufacturing (NSAM) are designed to expand manufacturing’s contribution to GDP, create millions of jobs, attract foreign investment, and strengthen domestic R&D. NSAM in particular sets the ambitious goal of capturing 5% of the global AM market by 2025, with measures to promote research, establish innovation hubs, and build a skilled workforce. Yet, while government intent is clear, the track record of Make in India underscores the risk of gaps between policy goals and realized outcomes. For businesses, this means opportunity cannot rest on policy alone but must be pursued through active collaboration with government frameworks. The true potential lies in leveraging policy as a gateway to a market already driven by India’s massive nuclear expansion, shifting the model from passive reliance to proactive engagement where industry takes the lead in unlocking long-term value
The Global Context and India’s Position
Leading nuclear nations are addressing sector challenges through strategic partnerships and research, de-risking AM and building knowledge others, including India, can leverage. For India—pursuing a vast nuclear expansion and indigenous technology development—integrating AM is not optional but a strategic necessity. With immense market demand and a supportive policy framework, India has a rare chance to create a resilient, independent nuclear supply chain. Global models show how public-private collaboration can accelerate this transition and provide a clear blueprint for India.
Innovations in Reactor Component Manufacturing: The USNC–ORNL Partnership
A notable example is the collaboration between the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and Ultra Safe Nuclear Corporation (USNC). Together they are developing and licensing a method to 3D print advanced reactor components using binder jet printing and chemical vapor infiltration. This process fabricates refractory materials like silicon carbide—highly resistant to heat and radiation but difficult and costly to machine conventionally. The partnership enables efficient production of complex core and structural components for USNC’s Micro Modular Reactor (MMR). More than a technical breakthrough, it highlights how national labs can de-risk early-stage technologies and create pathways for private commercialization—critical in a sector with steep entry barriers.Modernizing Legacy Infrastructure: The Vattenfall Model
Aging infrastructure is a global concern, and Sweden’s Vattenfall has pioneered AM to extend the lives of its 1970s–1980s reactors from 60 to 80 years. With many original manufacturers defunct, the company turned to AM to produce obsolete parts such as pipes, valves, and pump housings in various alloys. The printed parts often surpass the originals in quality, thanks to the precision of AM processes. Vattenfall also developed “virtual warehouses” of digital CAD models, enabling on-demand production and eliminating the need for physical inventory. This model of obsolescence management offers vital lessons for India’s own aging fleet.Disrupting Nuclear Construction: The Kairos Power–ORNL Blueprint
AM is also reshaping nuclear construction. ORNL, Kairos Power, and Barnard Construction are pioneering large-scale 3D-printed polymer composite forms for casting complex concrete structures, such as the Hermes Low-Power Demonstration Reactor bioshield. This cast-in-place method reduces production time from weeks to days and lowers material costs by up to 75% using timber-based biocomposite feedstocks. Since civil engineering accounts for over half of nuclear plant costs, this innovation directly tackles the industry’s most expensive bottleneck. It also demonstrates how modern manufacturing can transform reactor deployment through design agility and speed.
More broadly, this shift reflects a coordinated public-private-academic ecosystem, with national labs like ORNL serving as conveners and de-riskers, providing the long-term testing private firms cannot bear alone. The focus on SMRs, fusion systems, and legacy plant upgrades shows that AM is being applied to targeted, high-value problems across the nuclear lifecycle. For India, emulating this collaborative model is essential to accelerate its nuclear ambitions.
Value Chain Opportunities for Indian Companies
The convergence of India’s nuclear expansion and supportive policies is creating major business opportunities for both domestic and global firms. For Indian startups and established companies, several high-value entry points stand out:
Prototyping and R&D: Collaborations with research centers such as BARC and the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR) on new fuel designs, material development, and component testing for advanced reactors.
Obsolete Parts: Supplying on-demand AM-produced spare parts for India’s existing reactor fleet to cut downtime and reduce reliance on legacy suppliers.
Non-Safety-Critical Components: Entering with non-core components first, building experience and regulatory trust before progressing to more sensitive parts.
Advanced Materials: Developing and qualifying novel and functionally graded materials with superior mechanical and thermal properties for nuclear applications.
Specialized Service Bureaus: Positioning as niche AM service providers, offering design, production, and post-processing expertise across the nuclear supply chain.
Positioning India for Export Leadership
The government’s new emphasis on private-sector partnerships creates a clear entry point for foreign companies to invest in or collaborate with Indian firms. Global players can tap into local expertise, supportive policies, and an expanding industrial ecosystem to access a market that has traditionally been dominated by indigenous players. Such collaboration fosters technology transfer and the exchange of best practices, creating mutual benefits.
By developing a robust, AM-enabled indigenous nuclear supply chain, India can not only meet its domestic requirements but also position itself as a competitive exporter of nuclear components and services. The expertise and infrastructure built for nuclear will also generate powerful synergies with other advanced sectors such as aerospace and defense. A case in point is AgniKul Cosmos, an Indian startup that successfully 3D-printed an entire rocket engine in a single piece. This kind of cross-sector collaboration builds shared talent pools and strengthens the broader AM ecosystem, paving the way for India to emerge as a formidable player in global advanced manufacturing.
Moving Ahead
Additive Manufacturing is a strategic necessity for India’s nuclear future, offering cost reduction, faster timelines, and advanced component design to support both existing plants and new SMRs and reactors. Backed by ambitious expansion targets and policy support, this creates a rare opportunity for private sector participation. A key milestone in this journey will be the 6th India Nuclear Business Platform (INBP) 2025, scheduled for 14–15 October in Mumbai, where policymakers, global stakeholders, and industry leaders will align workforce strategies with technology rollouts, financing models, and international partnerships to shape the sector’s trajectory. Adoption of AM will strengthen energy security, foster self-reliance, and position India in the global nuclear supply chain. As nations seek efficient clean energy, an AM-driven ecosystem can boost India’s exports of components, services, and expertise, fueling its role in the nuclear renaissance. The path forward demands collaboration, innovation, and data-driven solutions to regulatory and technical hurdles, enabling India to expand its fleet while setting a competitive global model for nuclear development
