WASHINGTON: India plans to import eight 1000 MW nuclear-powered reactors by 2012 and the US hopes to win at least two contracts, which it feels will significantly boost its atomic industry.The envisaged sale of at least two reactors, to what it calls "lucrative and growing Indian market", would create 3000-5000 direct jobs and 10,000-15,000 indirect jobs in the US nuclear industry, the US Department of State has said.

"Access to Indian nuclear infrastructure would allow US companies build reactors more competitively here and in the rest of the world -- not just India," it said in answer to questions raised by the powerful US House Committee on Foreign Affairs.Though the replies to searching spate of queries raised by the House Committee on Foreign Affairs were delivered in October last year, they were made public by the new Chairman of the panel Howard Berman.

"We are confident that the initiative for a civil nuclear cooperation would yield important economic benefits to the US," the US State Department has told the Congress. India currently has 15 operating nuclear power reactors with seven under construction, but "it intends to increase this number significantly," it said. The Department's assessment says that meeting this ramp up in demand for civil nuclear reactors, technology, fuel and support services holds the promise of opening new markets for the US.