BEIJING: China will have 30 million kilowatts of nuclear power capacity by the end of this year, Xu Yuming, deputy director of the China Nuclear Energy Association, said here the other day.
There are now 23 nuclear power units operating in China, with a combined capacity of 21.4 million KW. Twenty-nine units are being built or planned, Xu said.
The government plans to increase China’s total nuclear power capacity to 58 million KW by 2020, a rise of 170 percent over the current level.
Xu estimates this will require 100 billion yuan (US$16.1 billion) of investment every year.
It is likely that China’s electricity usage will double by 2030, Xu said, adding that efforts should be made to promote clean energy including nuclear power.
Last month, China approved the construction of pilot nuclear power units using home-grown Hualong One technology.
