China

CHINA

First Nuclear Power Plant Opened:	1994
Number and Types of Nuclear Power Plants:	China currently has 9 reactors operating, of which 7 are Pressurized Water Reactors. The last two constructed employ Canada's CANDU technology.
Percentage of National Energy From Nuclear Power:	2%
Future Nuclear Power Plans:	China intends to significantly expand its nuclear industry to serve its burgeoning energy requirements.

ANALYSIS / ISSUES

China's economic performance over the last two decades has been breathtaking. It has averaged 8-9% growth every year in an era in which many of the world's biggest economies, including Japan, Germany and France have struggled to attain growth rates even one-third of that. As such, China's energy requirements are also increasing at a rapid rate. It is estimated that to keep up with its rapid growth, China will have to double its electricity capacity every decade.

China wants nuclear energy to play an increasingly important role in its energy requirements. It wants to increase nuclear capacity to about 40,000 MW from the current level of about 8,700 MW. China aims for nuclear energy to almost double its energy from nuclear power percentage to 4% from 2.3% today. Government and CP officials have been very loud in their support of nuclear power, and see it as one of the long-term answers to China's severe energy crisis - the Ministry of Electric Power recently estimated 15-20% of China's current electricity demand cannot be met and that 100 million Chinese have no access to electricity.

China has gone about its nuclear expansion by drawing upon the efforts and technology of other nations, including Russia, France and Canada but emphasizing the need for homegrown scientists and engineers to partake in the process. The development of nuclear power has taken place mainly along the coast, which is the area where China's economic activity is increasingly seen. The development is occurring at break-neck speed; China currently has 10 more nuclear reactors under construction, two of which are going to operational fairly soon (possibly end of this year or in 2006).

In short, if there is one area of the world that is ardently pro-nuclear, it is China. Unlike other big economies (U.S., Britain, Japan etc), there is no public debate within society on the merits and demerits of nuclear energy. As such, decisions that are made much more difficult by the democratic process and public pressure in other countries are made with ease and without trepidation in China. Couple that fact with the very real and fundamental needs of China's economy over the next few decades, and it becomes easy to see why nuclear energy is moving ahead very quickly on the mainland. In fact, a Chinese official was quoted as saying that by 2060, nuclear power could provide up to a third of China's power. How reliable that forecast can be is unclear but what is clear is that nuclear energy's stock is rising sharply in China and figures to do so for the considerable future.

Operating Mainland Nuclear Power Reactors

Units	Type	Net Capacity (each)	Start up
Daya Bay 1 & 2	PWR	944 MWe	1994
Qinshan - 1	PWR	279 MWe	April, 1994
Qinshan 2 & 3	PWR	610 MWe	2002, 2004
Lingao 1 & 2	PWR	935 MWe	2002, 2003
Qinshan 4 & 5	PHWR	665 MWe	2002, 2003
Total: 9		6587 MWe

Nuclear Power Reactors Under Construction

Reactor	Type	Net Capacity	Construction Start	Start Up
Tianwan - 1	PWR (VVER)	950 MWe	1999	2005
Tianwan - 2	PWR (VVER)	950 MWe	1999	2006
Total (2)		1900 MWe

 

Nuclear Power Units for 2005 Construction

Plant	Province	MWe Gross
Lingao - 2	Guangdong	2 X 1000
Qinshan - 4	Zhejiang	2 X 650
Sanmen	Zhejiang	1000/1500
Yangjian -1	Guangdong	2 X 1000/1500
Total : 8		7300-9300

 

Nuclear Power Units Proposed

Plant	Province	MWe Gross
Hongyanhe	Liaoning	4 X 1000
Haiyang	Shandong	6 X 1000
Weihai	Shandong	1 X 195
Hui'an	Fujian	2 X 1000
Qinshan - 5	Zhejiang	2 X 1000
Tianwan - 2	Jiangsu	2 X 1000
Yangjiang - 2	Guangdong	2 X 1000/1500
Yangjiang - 3	Guangdong	2 X 1000/1500
Taishan Yaogu	Guangdong	3 X 1000
Jinzhouwan	Liaoning	2 X 1000
	Jiangsu	2 X 300
	Hainan	2 X 300
Fuling	Chongqing	2 X 900
	Anhui	4 X 1000
	Jilin	4 X 1000
Total : 38		35,000 - 40,000