China: mass construction is becoming a reality

Reports from the Sanmen, Haiyang and Xudabao construction sites confirm that the Chinese nuclear program has entered the "industrial track" phase, where key milestones across different projects are reached in intervals of only a few days

Sanmen: From "cold" tests to fuel loading

On the third unit of the Sanmen Nuclear Power Plant (Zhejiang province), cold functional tests were successfully completed. These tests confirmed the leak-tightness of the primary circuit and the proper functioning of the high-pressure system, which represents a key milestone before moving to "hot" tests and finally fueling with nuclear fuel. When Units 3 and 4 (based on the CAP1000 design) go into operation, this energy giant will annually produce over 40 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity, directly replacing emissions of 30 million tons of $CO_2$.

Haiyang and Xudabao: Steel domes as a symbol of speed

Parallel to testing in Sanmen, massive construction work is being completed at other sites. At the Haiyang power plant (Shandong province), the outer steel dome on Unit 4 has been successfully erected. It is a module weighing nearly 1,000 tons, whose installation marks the end of the main structural work and the transition to the phase of intensive equipment installation.

A similar achievement was recorded in the north of the country, in Liaoning province, where on the first unit of the Xudabao plant an inner reactor dome was installed. The peculiarity of this process is that many systems—such as fire-suppression sprinklers and ventilation—are installed inside the dome itself before it is raised, thereby dramatically reducing risk and shortening the time to operate within the nuclear island.

CAP1000: China's answer to Western technology

The heart of this ascent is the CAP1000, China's version of the American AP1000 reactor (Westinghouse). The Chinese have successfully "mastered" the modular construction technique, which allows large reactor components to be assembled in factories and only installed at the construction site. Also, China plans to complete Haiyang 3 and 4 in just 56 months from groundbreaking to full operation, which would be a record-short time.