The first 100% Chinese nuclear reactor supports the country's ambitions in this area
HUBERT MARY PUBLISHED ON 08/09/2020
China loaded the fuel for the third generation nuclear reactor at the Fuqing power plant (south-east of the country). With a capacity of 1 megawatts, this is the first installation using 000% national technology. It shouldn't be the last. China thus intends to free itself from Western industrialists and discuss their international market shares with them.
This aerial photo taken on August 31, 2020 shows a panoramic view of the Fuqing Nuclear Project.
The start of a new era for nuclear power in the Middle Kingdom? Friday, September 4, for the first time, China loaded the fuel for a third generation reactor of 100% national design, in its power plant in Fuqing (southeast of the country). The technology, dubbed Hualong One, was developed by the two national nuclear mastodons, CNNC (Chinese National Nuclear Company) and CGNPC (China General Nuclear Power).
The installation, with a capacity of 1 megawatts, should be operational by the end of the year, according to CNNC.
A REACTOR INSPIRED BY FRENCH TECHNOLOGY
If the reactors are inspired by the principle of PWRs (pressurized water reactors), developed by Areva (now Orano), the technology developed by Chinese engineers is completely new, reports the Chinese press. This is an improvement of the CPR-1000 reactors, started up in the 2000s in China, but for which the industrial property rights for the assembly and certain components belonged to Areva.
In 2011, CNNC and CGNPC decided to launch an independent nuclear program at the request of their government and started work on the design of the Hualong One (or HPR-1000) reactor, a hybrid reactor mixing components from the American AP 1000 reactors and French EPR.
SEVEN OTHER PROJECTS IN PROGRESS IN THE NATIONAL TERRITORY
According to the newspaper Les Echos, "two other projects which will use this technology were also approved last week" (Wednesday, September 2) by Beijing. They are in addition to the four others decided in 2019 by the Chinese government. In a shorter time frame, in 2021, CNNC is expected to complete Reactor 6 at the Fuqing power plant, based on the same technology.
CHINA IS DIGGING THE GAP ON NEW GENERATION NUCLEAR ...
China is stepping up on its new generation nuclear program, launched in the 2000s, and widening the gap in this segment with France and especially the United States. In 2018, Beijing started up three AP 1000 reactors (Sanmen 2 and Haiyang 1 and 2), using technology from the American Westinghouse, as well as an EPR plant, in partnership with EDF. In 2019, two new reactors were connected to the national electricity grid, a new AP 1000 (also the first using fuel assemblies made in China) and an EPR (Taishan-2).
In addition, China is still working on the development of versatile modular mini-reactors, called Linglong One.
... AND NOW BETTING ON THE EXPORT OF ITS TECHNOLOGY
In 2015 and then in 2016, Pakistan chose to equip itself with Chinese Hualong One reactors to supply its Karachi power station (units two and three), whose construction was completed in 2019 and 2020. They should enter in service within a year or two.
Another country knocking on the door, the United Kingdom. Since 2017, China has been in ambush to bid for the tender for the construction of two reactors in Bradlwell, Essex, currently dismantled after 40 years of existence. Beijing hopes to receive approval from British authorities by 2022.
A new entrant which is likely to call into question the monopoly of Western industrialists in the sector.
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