China Achieves World’s First Operational Thorium Molten Salt Reactor, Surpassing India’s Long-Standing Goal

New Delhi: In a landmark scientific achievement, China has become the first country in the world to build and operate a 2-megawatt liquid-fuelled thorium molten salt reactor (TMSR-LF1) — successfully transforming thorium into usable nuclear fuel. The breakthrough, announced on November 1 by the Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics, marks a milestone that India has long aspired to reach but has yet to accomplish.

The institute confirmed that the TMSR-LF1 has achieved the first-ever conversion of thorium and uranium nuclear fuel, calling it “the only operational molten salt reactor in the world to have successfully incorporated thorium fuel.”

While China has moved swiftly to harness thorium’s potential, India — despite possessing one of the world’s largest thorium reserves — continues to advance cautiously in its nuclear programme.

India’s Response: A Measured Approach

Officials from India’s Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) told ThePrint that the country’s nuclear roadmap remains independent and self-determined.

“India has its own journey and challenges. We must take lessons from our neighbours, but not base our progress on theirs. Our nuclear programme is unique,” a DAE official said.

Renowned nuclear scientist and former Atomic Energy Commission chairman Dr. Anil Kakodkar acknowledged that India could have achieved this milestone before China, but said the development remains significant for the global energy sector.

“Thorium utilisation has long been the target of India’s nuclear programme. Such achievements go beyond national pride—they open the door for a new era of sustainable energy,” Kakodkar noted.

India’s Thorium Promise

India has for decades viewed thorium as a potential game-changer for its energy future. The country holds approximately 11.93 million tonnes of monazite reserves, containing 1.07 million tonnes of thorium, according to government data. India’s three-stage nuclear programme, conceptualised by Dr. Homi J. Bhabha in the 1950s, was ultimately designed to harness thorium as a long-term energy source.

Recently, India began fuel loading at its Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) in Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu, a 500 MW liquid sodium-cooled reactor expected to become operational by the end of 2026. While the PFBR primarily uses plutonium, its technology is also compatible with thorium-based fuels.

Thorium, however, is fertile rather than fissile, meaning it cannot directly power a reactor. It must first be converted into the fissile isotope Uranium-233 through a complex neutron absorption and decay process. This conversion is central to next-generation reactor designs such as molten salt and advanced heavy water reactors.

A 2004 Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) report estimated that India’s thorium reserves could generate 358,000 GWe-years of electricity — enough to power the country well beyond the next century. Most of these reserves lie along the coastal belts of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, and Andhra Pradesh, particularly around the Kanyakumari–Manavalakurichi region near Ram Setu, known for its rich monazite deposits.

India’s Nuclear Progress: Slow but Steady

Over the past seven decades, India has built around 20 pressurised heavy-water reactors (PHWRs) and is now advancing with new designs such as the Advanced Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR), which employs thorium-based fuel cycles and advanced passive safety systems.

Experts, however, believe that India must diversify its reactor technology portfolio.

“Learning from China’s molten salt reactor success, India should look beyond heavy-water reactors,” said Lokendra Sharma, research analyst at the Takshashila Institution. “It’s time to explore molten salt, accelerator-driven, and high-temperature gas-cooled reactor systems.”

Sharma also noted that while India’s three-stage programme was crucial for securing weapons-grade plutonium, it has largely served its strategic purpose.

“Now, India must pursue direct thorium utilisation in parallel with its long-term programme,” he added.

China’s Rapid Rise

China’s molten salt reactor project began in September 2018, initially scheduled for completion in 2024 but finished ahead of time in August 2021. Between 2013 and 2024, the country built 13 new reactors and plans to construct 33 more.

Although many of its reactors initially drew on U.S. and French designs, China is now investing heavily in indigenous experimental nuclear technologies, with a focus on drastically reducing production costs.

A 2024 study published in Nature by researchers from Harvard University, City University of New York, and Johns Hopkins University found that while U.S. reactor construction costs have risen since the 1960s, China’s costs have halved since the 2000s.

For instance, the Vogtle 4 reactor in the U.S., with a capacity of 1,250 MW, cost around $15 per watt, whereas China’s Fangchenggang 4 reactor, operational since March 2024 with a capacity of 1,180 MW, cost only $1.97 per watt — a dramatic difference illustrating China’s efficiency in nuclear infrastructure development.

As Beijing takes a commanding lead in thorium-based nuclear energy, the world watches closely — and for India, this moment serves as both a challenge and an opportunity to accelerate its own thorium journey toward a sustainable, self-reliant energy future.