The heavy engineering arm of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has flagged-off the most complex and final assembly of Cryostat, the largest stainless-steel, high-vacuum pressure chamber in the world.
The flagging off ceremony took place at L&T’s Hazira Manufacturing Complex in Surat, Gujarat. The company has successfully completed fabrication of all the segments of Cryostat, including most recently the segments of Cryostat Lid.
The ITER Project and ITER-India had L&T their partner and the primary contractor for Cryostat fabrication.
The company has used innovative and digital manufacturing techniques to ensure uninterrupted supply of high-quality, high-precision assemblies to ITER.
This will further pave the way for the installation of Cryostat at the project site in France and eventually lead to demonstration of large-scale feasibility of fusion power.
The Cryostat assembly referred as the Top Lid, weighing 650 tonne, is to be installed with other Cryostat segments for International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) in a reactor pit in southern France.
L&T has already delivered the Base section, the Lower Cylinder and the Upper Cylinder for Cryostat. The fabrication of these components has been an engineering marvel both in terms of its massive size and stringent quality standards.
The project scope for L&T Heavy Engineering is divided into three aspects. Firstly, the company was to manufacture assemblies at its state-of-the-art Hazira manufacturing complex.
The second aspect involved constructing a temporary workshop at the project site in Cadarache, France, for the assembly of various sectors. And finally, it is to integrate Cryostat with Tokamak Reactor building.
With this flag-off, L&T Heavy Engineering has completed the manufacturing work planned in India.
L&T’s Heavy Engineering business won this contract from ITER India, a wing of the Department of Atomic Energy, for the ambitious mega scientific project, conducted in collaboration with seven elite countries including India, and with a project outlay of around USD 20 billion.
L&T Heavy Engineering has state-of-the-art, fully integrated, world-class manufacturing facilities at Hazira (Surat), Powai (Mumbai) and Vadodara.