On April 25, Changjiang Nuclear Power Project in Hainan, jointly funded by China National Nuclear Corporation and China Huaneng Group, was started.
The project is located at Tangxing Village, Haiwei Town, Changjiang County, Hainan Province, neighboring North Bay. It is in the industrial corridor in the west of Hainan and can accommodate 4 large-scale nuclear power units. The plant will apply the "Improved Generation II technology, the CNP600 PWR nuclear power plant technology developed by CNNC that owns its independent intellectual property rights. The second phase of the Qinshan nuclear power plant will be used as the reference plant. The project will consist of two 650 MWe units with an investment about RMB19 billion. The first unit is scheduled to be connected to the grid by the end of 2014.
Hainan is a province short of primary energy, while 66% of its hydropower resource has been utilized. Most energy consumed has been from coal, but the island has little coal resource and its needs have to be met with resources far away. The sea area of the province is abundant in oil and gas resources, but it is hard to meet the huge demand of power generation in the near future.
After going into operation, Changjiang Nuclear Power Project will greatly alleviate the shortage of primary energy in Hainan Province, maintain the stability, safety and sustainability of power supply, and reduce the construction scale of coal-fired power plants on the island, so as to cut down pollutant emissions from such coal-fired plants and produce significant environmental benefits.
The preliminary calculations show that, if the nuclear power units run 7,000 hours a year, their construction will reduce the province's consumption of coal by some 2.6 million tons annually, cutting carbon dioxide emissions by around 7.8 million tons, soot emissions by about 450 tons, sulfur dioxide emissions by approximate 1600 tons and nitrogen oxide emissions by 9700 tons or so.
Changjiang Nuclear Power Plant is a commercial project jointly funded and constructed by China National Nuclear Corporation and China Huaneng Group in the proportion of 51% and 49%. CNNC Hainan Nuclear Co., Limited is the project owner, responsible for the construction, commissioning, operation and management of Changjiang Nuclear Power Project in Hainan.
