WNE2023 | COUNTRY PAVILLIONS China: Coming on strong
China has rapidly accelerated its nuclear progress and alongside technology development it is also building far more nuclear capacity than any other single nation.
Nuclear power forms a key element of China’s future energy plans and the country is far and away the global leader in terms of new build. Currently there are some 22 reactors under construction with a combined capacity of more than 22.7 GWe. China alone accounts for nearly half of all reactors under construction worldwide. They will join the 55 operating reactors in the coming years and China’s nuclear installed capacity is expected to reach approximately 70 GW
by 2025. However, given China’s soaring power demand and reliance on fossil-fuelled capacity, this will actually do little to increase the overall proportion of electricity demand met by nuclear which currently hovers at around 5%. Nonetheless, at the beginning of 2022 the 14th Five-Year Plan
Above: A nuclear power plant in Xinjiang China
for the Modern Energy System stated that China will “actively develop nuclear power in a safe and orderly manner” including demonstrations of advanced reactors including high temperature, fast breeder, and small modular reactors. An example comes from the recent announcement of first concrete at the Lianjiang plant which will be China’s first to have a recirculating seawater cooling system and super-large cooling towers, which reduces the amount of sea water used. Once complete Lianjiang will feature six CAP1000 PWRs, a Chinese adaptation of Westinghouse’s AP1000. The first Lianjiang unit is scheduled to be operational in 2028. China is also on track to become the world’s first nation to deploy terrestrial SMR technology with its ACP100 reactor (also known as Linglong One). Earlier this year the country completed assembly and installation of the core ACP100 module at Changjiang on the southern island province of Hainan. The ACP100 is an indigenously designed PWR with a design output of 125 MWe. Scheduled to enter commercial operation by the end of 2026, a second ACP100 is also under development at the site. Changjiang also hosts two operating Chinese-designed CNP600 PWRs. Alongside domestic development, China is also looking at exporting its nuclear technology. Recent media reports indicate the country is being considered for a nuclear development in Saudi Arabia.
Czech Republic: Maximising the nuclear opportunity
The Czech Republic is not only looking to increase nuclear capacity with a new reactor, it is extending the fuelling cycle and uprating its existing units to get the most out of its nuclear assets.
About a third of the Czech Republic’s electricity comes from nuclear power and the six reactors that are located at two sites, Dukovany and Temelin. The four VVER-440 units at Dukovany were commissioned during the 1980s while the two VVER-1000 units at Temelin were completed and began commercial operations in the early 2000s. Plans to build additional units at the two sites have been mooted and recently Czech power utility CEZ extended the deadline for submitting final bids for construction of a new reactor at the Dukovany. Westinghouse, EDF and Korea hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) are all reportedly bidding with various plans for pressurised water reactor designs. The new reactor is expected to begin operations in 2036. Meanwhile, this year CEZ also launched a tender for two new generators for the Temelín units which are expected to increase output from 1125 MWe to 1150 MWe each. CEZ intends to swap the generators between 2028 and 2030 and each will have a lifespan of some 40 years, indicative of a 60+ year plant life. As the country aims to increase its nuclear capacity it is also looking for more efficiency in the fuelling cycle. CEZ says unit 2 of Temelín is transitioning from a 12-month to an 18-month fuel
cycle as part of a wider programme to increase efficiency and move towards a 60-year operating life. The fuel enrichment will be the same, but the replacement assemblies will contain more absorbers to dampen their reactivity. Unit 4 of the Dukovany is also switching to new-generation PK3+ fuel from TVEL, which is designed to make more efficient the use of uranium. The fuel cycles are extending to 16 months at Dukovany. CEZ notes that extending the fuel cycle makes a significant contribution to electricity production. Earlier this year, CEZ also agreed to future fuel supplies from Westinghouse with deliveries expected to begin in 2024.
Above: The Dukovany nuclear power plant in the Czech Republic
58 | WNE Special Edition |
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