Nuclear power development in China

China is another Asian country which is pushing ahead with nuclear energy expansion to meet its growing energy needs. While detailed information may be lacking, the following short piece by Dale Jiajun Wen, based mainly on official Chinese statements and reports, provides some idea of this expansion and China's attitude to nuclear power.

ACCORDING to Wu Yin, Deputy Director of China's National Energy Administration, China has accelerated the construction of nuclear power stations in recent years. Besides 11 nuclear power units that are already in operation, there are 21 units under construction with a combined installed capacity of 23 gigawatts.

Data compiled by the World Nuclear Association confirms that China speeded up the construction of nuclear power plants in 2009. The data showed that construction of two 1.25 million kW nuclear power units in Sanmen, Zhejiang province, two 1.25 million kW nuclear power plants in Haiyang, Shandong province and two 1.75 million kW nuclear power units in Taishan, Guangdong province was started in 2009.

Power shortages and pollution

Most of mainland China's electricity is produced from fossil fuels (80% from coal, 2% from oil, 1% from gas in 2006) and hydropower (15%).

Rapid growth in demand has given rise to power shortages, and the reliance on fossil fuels has led to much air pollution. The economic loss due to pollution is put by the World Bank at almost 6% of GDP. China recently overtook the USA as the world's largest emitter of carbon dioxide.

In order to improve efficiency, small inefficient coal-fired plants have been forced into retirement: 26 GW of these were closed in 2009, making an aggregate of 60 GW closed since 2006. All this has resulted in a  cut in annual coal consumption by 69 million tonnes and annual carbon dioxide emissions by 139 Mt. The plants were replaced by large-capacity and environmentally friendlier (more efficient, thus less pollution and greenhouse gas emission per unit power) thermal power plants in 2009: China now has the world's largest number of super-critical and ultra super-critical power plants. By the end of last year, thermal plants with a capacity above 300,000 kW accounted for 64.46% of the nation's total.

China has also attached great importance to the development of wind and solar power in the last few years. In 2005, China set two wind power goals - 5 GW by 2010 and 30 GW by 2020 - but it has consistently outpaced them. Wind energy has grown at an amazing 85% annual rate in the last five years. By 2007, it had already reached 5 GW, and it raised its 2020 target to 100 GW.  China is now the fourth largest wind energy producer in the world. China's solar industry is also growing rapidly. China produced 35% of the global supply of solar photovoltaics in 2007, up from 20% in 2006. According to a Reuters report on 25 March, China has installed renewable energy capacity per unit of GDP that exceeds that in both Germany and the United States.

Despite these moves, the country still faces serious power shortage and pollution problems. The Chinese  justify their nuclear energy programmes as part of their  measures  to address the rising energy demand as well as environmental concerns including greenhouse gas emissions.

Given the intermittent nature of wind and solar power, the Chinese government and industry see an important role for nuclear power to play, especially in the coastal areas remote from the coalfields and where the economy is developing rapidly. Generally, nuclear plants can be built close to centres of demand, whereas suitable wind and hydro sites are remote from demand.

'A major choice'

The Chinese government  regards nuclear  power as 'a major choice to develop [the] economy and optimise energy structure', said Wu Yin on 8 March at an international conference on civilian use of nuclear energy in Paris.

A Reuters report on 22 March  cites Huang Li, deputy head of the National Energy Administration's energy saving and equipment department, as saying that China's nuclear power generating capacity will grow to at least 70 to 80 GW by 2020, almost doubling its earlier plan. China previously said it would have 40 GW of installed nuclear capacity and 18 GW under construction by 2020, but government and industry officials have  repeatedly  urged  a  higher  target to speed up clean energy sources and reduce  the  country's  reliance on  coal.

The nuclear technology has been drawn from France, Canada and Russia, with local development based largely on the French element. The latest technology acquisition has been from the USA (via Westinghouse, owned by Japan's Toshiba) and France. The Westinghouse AP-1000 is the main basis of technology development in the immediate future.

Despite drawing on foreign technology, China is rapidly becoming self-sufficient in reactor design and construction, as well as other aspects of the fuel cycle. The government has set the following points as key elements of its nuclear energy policy ('Nuclear Power in China', updated 15 February 2010, www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf63.html):

 Pressurised water reactors will be the mainstream but not sole reactor type.

 Nuclear fuel assemblies are fabricated and supplied indigenously.

 Domestic manufacturing of plant and equipment will be maximised, with self-reliance in design and project management.

 International cooperation is nevertheless encouraged.

Affirming that nuclear security is a top priority, the National Energy Administration’s Wu Yin presented some suggestions during the Paris conference to achieve this goal. 'The security of nuclear energy is beyond borders, we should strive to shape a culture on safe use of nuclear power. Developed countries in terms of nuclear use have the responsibility to help the less developed ones to establish laws and regulations, supervision and management systems on nuclear security,' Wu said.                                  

As an activist scholar from China, Dale Jiajun Wen has been working on social justice and sustainable development issues. Her current focus is climate change and sustainable agriculture.

References

The information in this article was compiled from the following reports:

1)      'China, Germany lead the race toward a low-carbon economy', 25 March 2010, Reuters

2)      'China 2020 nuclear capacity to double from earlier plan', 22 March 2010, Reuters

3)      'China supports nuclear power development in orderly way: official', 9 March 2010, People's Daily Online

4)      'China's nuclear power capacity over 21 million kW', 7 January 2010, People's Daily Online

5)      'Nuclear Power in China', updated 15 February 2010, www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf63.html

*Third World Resurgence No. 235, March 2010, pp 21-22