China marks further milestones in Hualong One reactor construction

Construction of two new Chinese Hualong One nuclear units has reached key milestones. While construction of Unit 3 at the Taipingling plant has officially begun, Unit 1 at the San-ao plant has successfully completed hot tests and is close to starting up. Both plants are planned to have six units, giving each a total capacity of more than 7 GW once completed.

Chinese energy company China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN) announced two important milestones at its new nuclear construction sites in the first half of June. CGN has started construction of the second phase of the Taipingling plant, which will have a total of six Hualong One (HPR1000) nuclear reactors across its three phases.

China began building the first pair of reactors in 2019 and 2020, and they are expected to enter commercial operation this year and next.

“As part of the project, we completed the first concrete pour for the nuclear island of Unit 3, officially beginning construction of the main project,” CGN said.

The second milestone is the completion of hot functional tests at Unit 1 of the San-ao nuclear power plant. During the tests, the unit underwent a simulation of operating conditions and its steam turbine was started for the first time.

San-ao 1 will now be loaded with nuclear fuel in the reactor core. Technicians will then connect the unit to the grid and begin operational tests at different power levels.

CGN began construction of the plant’s first phase, comprising two Hualong One units, in 2020 and 2021. The company expects them to enter commercial operation in 2026 and 2027.

Massive build-out of nuclear units

Since 2022, the Chinese government has regularly approved the construction of ten or more new reactors a year and plans to maintain this pace through 2035. At present, the country operates just under 60 reactors, with more than 30 others under construction and more than 20 planned. China aims to have 120 GW of nuclear capacity in operation by 2035.

China currently has the world’s second-largest number of operating nuclear reactors. The US holds the top spot, but China is likely to overtake it in the next decade. Nuclear plants in China are typically built in three phases, with each phase starting five years after the previous one. Each phase comprises two Hualong One or CAP 1000 units, with construction starts typically about a year apart.