China has started commercial operations at a new generation nuclear reactor that is the first of its kind in the world.
Key points
- Compared with previous reactors, the fourth-generation Shidaowan plant in China’s northern Shandong province is designed to use fuel more efficiently and improve its economics, safety and environmental footprint.
- The 200 megawatt (MW) high-temperature, gas-cooled reactor (HTGCR) plant uses a modular design.
- Modular plants refer to those of less than 300MW that can be constructed off site. Proponents say they can operate in remote locations and power traditionally hard-to-abate heavy industry sectors, but critics say they are too expensive.
- NuScale Power, previously expected to be the first U.S. company licensed to build a small modular reactor, said it was terminating a planned 462MW project in Utah because of rising costs.
- China has a goal to produce 10% of electricity from nuclear by 2035 and 18% by 2060, but as of September this year had not met its 2020 target to install 58 gigawatts of nuclear capacity.
