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China Civilian Nuclear Industry, Technology, Exports and Supply Chain: News & Discussions

Does it mean you will start to get electricity from it after about 10 years?
The “within a decade” was perhaps just a rough saying by the journalist, and very conservative. The construction time of a nuclear power plant is usually taken as the duration between the pouring of the first “nuclear concrete” and grid connection. Given good supply chain, expertise and engineering protocols, 48-54 months should be a fair projection nowadays.
 
Auditor slams UK’s Hinkley nuclear deal with France and China
23 June 2017 | By GCR Staff

A national spending watchdog today released a damning report saying the UK government has put consumers and taxpayers at risk in its deal with French and Chinese state-owned companies to build and operate the £18bn Hinkley Point C nuclear power station.

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The report by the National Audit Office (NAO) says the deal with France’s EDF and China General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGN) did not sufficiently consider the costs and risks to consumers, who now face top-up payments totalling £30bn, up from earlier estimates of £6bn.

The NAO said the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s narrow assumptions about future fossil fuel prices, renewables costs and follow-on nuclear projects meant the value-for-money case for Hinkley Point C is weak.

“The Department has committed electricity consumers and taxpayers to a high cost and risky deal in a changing energy marketplace,” said NAO chief Amyas Morse on the release of the report.​

“Time will tell whether the deal represents value for money, but we cannot say the Department has maximised the chances that it will be.”

http://pl.globalconstructionreview.com/news/auditor-slams-uks-hinkley-nu7clear-dea7l-fran7ce/
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EDF Says U.K. Nuclear-Project Cost May Top 20 Billion Pounds
July 3, 2017, 4:49 PM GMT+8 July 3, 2017, 7:42 PM GMT+8

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Hinkley Point C nuclear power station under construction. Photographer: Luke MacGregor/Bloomberg

Electricite de France SA
said the final bill for building two new reactors in the U.K. could rise to more than 20 billion pounds ($26 billion), reflecting changes to supplier contracts and plant design, and potential construction delays.

The estimated completion cost for the Hinkley Point C reactors in southwest England is now 19.6 billion pounds, up from 18 billion pounds last September, the Paris-based company said Monday in a statement. A slippage in schedule could add a further 700 million pounds, it said.

“We’ve been able to finalize contracts with some suppliers only after the final investment decision was made” last year, Vincent de Rivaz, the head of EDF’s U.K. subsidiary, said on a conference call. “As we entered the detailed design phase, several adjustments that are specific to the U.K. and to the regulators’ request have emerged.”

The review -- just 10 months after EDF signed its contract with the British government -- not only cuts the expected rate of return but raises concern costs could climb further amid doubts over EDF’s ability to manage large nuclear projects on budget. The Hinkley plan is already controversial in the U.K., where a state auditor warned it may cost electricity consumers 30 billion pounds over the lifetime of the contract. It’s even been contentious within EDF itself, with finance chief Thomas Piquemal resigning last year.

“Every nuclear power station currently being built in Europe and the U.S.A. has gone massively over time and over budget,” John Sauven, executive director at Greenpeace U.K., said in a statement. “Long before Hinkley is even finished, offshore wind will be producing far cheaper and safer power.”

Rate of Return

EDF said Monday there’s a risk of a 15-month delay for Hinkley Unit 1 -- initially planned for completion at the end of 2025 -- and a nine-month holdup for Unit 2, due mid-2026. It now expects a rate of return of 8.5 percent from the project, half a point less than before, with potential delays pushing that down to 8.2 percent. The company maintained profit targets.

The cost overrun “shouldn’t be a huge problem” for EDF’s finances given the long construction time, said Elchin Mammadov, an analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence in London.

De Rivaz said he sees no impact on the contract from tweaking costs and timeframes. While the recent weakening of the pound against the euro is making procurement more expensive, it’s reducing funding costs, he said, adding that construction is progressing as planned and EDF remains “mobilized” to keep it on track.

Labor unions had wanted the Hinkley project postponed to benefit from feedback on reactors under construction in France, Finland and China. At Flamanville in Normandy, where EDF is building a reactor of the same design proposed for Hinkley, costs have more than tripled to 10.5 billion euros ($12 billion) and construction is six years behind schedule.

The U.K. plant will earn 92.50 pounds a megawatt-hour for the power it generates over 35 years, with the government paying the difference between the market value of the electricity and EDF’s contracted rate.

EDF owns 66.5 percent of the project and China General Nuclear Power Corp. owns the rest.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...uclear-project-cost-may-top-20-billion-pounds
 
China starts mass production of HTGR fuel elements
Source: Xinhua| 2017-07-17 21:49:04|Editor: Zhang Dongmiao



HOHHOT, July 17 (Xinhua) -- The world's first production line for high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) fuel elements has started mass production at China North Nuclear Fuel, headquartered in Baotou in northern China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

The 200,000 spherical fuel elements were made Monday, marking a transition from a test production line to an industrial one, according to Wang Shoujun, president of China National Nuclear Corporation, parent company of China North Nuclear Fuel.

China is cementing its leading position as a manufacturer of HTGR fuel elements, Wang said.

With a designed capacity of 300,000 spherical fuel elements per year, the production line will provide fuel for the demonstration high-temperature gas-cooled reactor plant being built at Shidaowan, near Rongcheng city in Shandong Province.

China has independent intellectual property rights for the production line, which was put into operation in 2016. The HTGR is best known for its inherent safety design.
 
First criticality achieved at Fuqing 4
19 July 2017

Unit 4 of the Fuqing nuclear power plant in China's Fujian province achieved a sustained chain reaction for the first time on 16 July, China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) announced yesterday. The unit is expected to enter commercial operation later this year.

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Operators in Fuqing 4's control room (Image: CNNC)

Following inspections of the unit, China's National Nuclear Safety Administration issued a licence on 9 June for fuel to be loaded into Fuqing 4. The process of loading the 157 fuel assemblies into the reactor core began on 13 June and was completed on 19 June.

CNNC said that after a series of critical tests, Fuqing 4 will start producing power and grid connection tests will be carried out on the turbo-generators. After that, a series of commissioning tests will be conducted at the unit, including a load test run and other relevant testing before entering full-power demonstration operation. It is scheduled to enter commercial operation by the end of this year.

CNNC's Fuqing plant will eventually house six Chinese-designed pressurised water reactors, the first four being 1087 MWe CPR-1000 units. Units 1 to 3 entered commercial operation in November 2014, October 2015 and October 2016, respectively.

China's State Council gave final approval for construction of Fuqing units 5 and 6 in mid-April. First concrete was poured for the fifth unit in May 2015, while that for unit 6 was poured in December. These will be demonstration indigenously-designed Hualong One reactors.

The Fuqing nuclear power plant project is owned by CNNC subsidiary China Nuclear Power Company (51%); Huadian Fuxin Energy Company (39%); and Fujian Investment and Development Group (10%).

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News

http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-First-criticality-achieved-at-Fuqing-4-1907174.html
 
CNNC extends Sino-Saudi nuclear collaboration
Updated: 2017-07-20

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China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) convened the Saudi uranium and thorium resources evaluation symposium in conjunction with the first coordinating committee conference on Sino-Saudi nuclear energy cooperative projects in Urumqi, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region on July 17.

Witnessed by top officials from both countries, the uranium and thorium resources project has achieved significant results, laying a solid foundation for CNNC to promote cooperation on the whole industry chain with Saudi Arabia, as well as in carrying out negotiations with countries along the Belt and Road.

Prior to the symposium, on March 16, CNNC Chairman Wang Shoujun and Dr Zohair A Nawab, president of the Saudi Geological Survey (SGS), had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) regarding bilateral cooperation on uranium and thorium resources, in the presence of China’s President Xi Jinping and Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in Beijing.

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CNNC has promised to work on detecting radioactive resources in nine potential areas in Saudi Arabia within the next two years, according to the agreement. As the project executor, CNNC’s China Uranium Industry Company organized nearly 100 geologists to conduct fieldwork in Saudi Arabia.

In late May, CNNC staff completed the fieldwork phase and discovered and labeled several target mineral areas, building a solid foundation for further assignments. Saudi officials and experts praised the breakthrough made by crew in mine exploration and exploitation.
 
CGN in talk to build first nuclear power plant in Poland
chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2017-07-25 15:56

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A worker walks past a gas circulator in the turbine hall at EDF Energy's Hinkley Point B Nuclear Power Station in Bridgwater, southwestern England. [Photo/Agencies]

Energy giant China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN) is in talks to build Poland's first nuclear power plant, the company said in a statement on Monday.

A Polish delegation headed by Andrzej Piotrowski, deputy minister of energy visited the Shenzhen-based company earlier this month. Piotrowski met his Chinese counterpart Li Fanrong in Beijing. The two countries signed a memorandum on nuclear cooperation for civil use.

The Polish delegation visited Dayawan nuclear plant and Hualong One reactors project, according to the statement released on CGN's website.

The discussion heralds the State-owned energy giant's increasing interest in the European market, trailing its project in Britain.

CGN signed the 18-billion-pound Hinkley Point C power plant agreement last September with French energy firm EDF and the British government. The project has been hailed as a gateway to promote Chinese nuclear technology.

"The UK has a very high standard for nuclear energy, especially in the aspect of its safety. If Hualong One could enter the British market, it means that the nuclear technology of China comes very close to those of developed countries," Zhao Chengkun, former director of China's National Nuclear Safety Administration, told China Business News.

Poland government plans to build two nuclear power plants with a total capacity of six million kilowatts, the statement noted.

Companies including France's Areva and EDF, the US' Westinghouse and Canada's SNC-Lavalin Nuclear are also eyeing to take part in the race, according to Polish media.

Tan Xinyu contributed to this story.
 
First criticality achieved at Fuqing 4
19 July 2017

Unit 4 of the Fuqing nuclear power plant in China's Fujian province achieved a sustained chain reaction for the first time on 16 July, China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) announced yesterday. The unit is expected to enter commercial operation later this year.
China connects fourth unit at Fuqing
31 July 2017

Unit 4 of the Fuqing nuclear power plant in China's Fujian province has been connected to the grid, China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) announced today. The 1087 MWe CPR-1000 unit becomes the country's 37th operational power reactor.

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Fuqing 3 and 4 (Image: CNNC)

CNNC said the unit was connected to the grid at 6.09pm on 29 July.

First concrete was poured for unit 4 in December 2012 and its dome was put in place in June 2014. The process of loading the 157 fuel assemblies into the reactor core began on 13 June this year and was completed on 19 June. The unit achieved a sustained chain reaction for the first time on 16 July.

The unit will now undergo a load test run and other relevant testing before entering full-power demonstration operation. It is expected to enter commercial operation later this year.

CNNC's Fuqing plant will eventually house six Chinese-designed pressurised water reactors, the first four being 1087 MWe CPR-1000 units. Units 1 to 3 entered commercial operation in November 2014, October 2015 and October 2016, respectively.

China's State Council gave final approval for construction of Fuqing 5 and 6 in mid-April 2015. First concrete was poured for the fifth unit in May 2015, while that for unit 6 was poured in December. These will be demonstration indigenously-designed Hualong One reactors.

CNNC said it expects all six units at Fuqing "to be fully commissioned and put into operation in 2021".

The Fuqing nuclear power plant project is owned by CNNC subsidiary China Nuclear Power Company (51%); Huadian Fuxin Energy Company (39%); and Fujian Investment and Development Group (10%).

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News

http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-China-connects-fourth-unit-at-Fuqing-3107174.html
 
China, Pakistan agree to uranium cooperation
31 July 2017

China and Pakistan have agreed to cooperate in uranium exploration and mining. China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) said it had signed a framework agreement with the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission yesterday for technical cooperation in the exploration and development of uranium resources. China signed a similar agreement with Saudi Arabia earlier this year.

Under the new agreement, China's uranium industry will fully employ its technological advantages, its nuclear research institutes, nuclear chemistry industry, aerial remote sensing centre and other units in its cooperation with Pakistan.

CNNC, which said Pakistan is an "important bridge across the Middle East and South Asia", has already exported four 300 MWe reactors to that country and is constructing two 1000 MWe units. It said it is actively engaged in cooperation with Pakistan in uranium resources, nuclear technology applications, the training of workers and other areas.

In March, CNNC signed a memorandum of understanding with the Saudi Geological Survey regarding bilateral cooperation in uranium and thorium resources. Under the agreement, CNNC is to carry out exploration of nine potential areas in the Kingdom within the next two years. In late May, CNNC said it had completed the fieldwork phase and identified several target mineral areas for further investigation.

On 15 July, CNNC's Beijing Research Institute of Chemical Engineering and Metallurgy signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia's King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology to collaborate in research on extracting uranium from seawater. According to that agreement, Saudi and Chinese researchers will conduct a two-year investigation.

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News



http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/UF-China-Pakistan-agree-to-uranium-cooperation-3107175.html
 
China powers up on nuclear projects
By ZHENG XIN | China Daily | Updated: 2017-08-01 07:43

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A worker walks through the concrete batching area during the early part of pre-construction at the planned Hinkley Point C nuclear power station in the United Kingdom. LUKE MACGREGOR / BLOOMBERG

CGN is becoming a major player on the global stage after expanding its civil uranium supply chain to meet increased domestic demand

China's largest nuclear power group is expanding its uranium supply chain for domestic and worldwide civil projects.

The State-owned China General Nuclear Power Corp has put together agreements in most of the uranium-producing countries, including Namibia, Kazakhstan, Australia and Canada.

This has been part of the company's development in the past 11 years, Yu Zhiping, general manager of CGNPC Uranium Resources Co Ltd, a subsidiary of CGN, stressed.

"It is extremely important for Chinese nuclear power operators to secure uranium resources overseas for long-term supply security," said Joseph Jacobelli, a senior analyst of Asian utilities and infrastructure at Bloomberg Intelligence in Hong Kong.

CGN is one of only two companies in the country permitted to import nuclear fuel, along with China National Nuclear Corp. It operates in 20 countries from its headquarters in Shenzhen, with total assets worth 430.7 billion yuan ($64 billion).

The group, founded in the 1990s, expanded its links with Kazatomprom after inking a 10-year deal with the Kazakhstan State-owned company in 2010.

Back in May, CGN announced that it would increase its nuclear fuel supply, including uranium mining, nuclear fuel pellets and nuclear fuel fabrication, to cater for rising demand for its civil power plant projects.

Yu also confirmed that the nuclear fuel fabrication plant in Kazakhstan, a joint venture between Kazatomprom and CGN, is expected to be operational by 2019.

"The fuel will be supplied mostly to CGN projects at home and abroad," Yu said. "The fuel will also be supplied to Kazakhstan's planned nuclear plant."

Besides its close business ties in Kazakhstan, CGN owns and operates the Namibian Husab Uranium Mine, which can produce 5,500 metric tons of nuclear fuel per year. It is the third largest uranium mine in the world.

Last year, the company also paid $63.78 million for 19.99 percent stake in Fission Uranium Corp in Canada. It was the first direct investment by a Chinese group in the Canadian uranium sector.

Along with Australia, Kazakhstan and Canada account for 63 percent of the world's uranium resources, figures released by the International Atomic Energy Agency showed.

Industry insiders believe Chinese corporations have the potential to become major global players when they come to civil nuclear technology after beefing up their supply chains.

"Strategically, it is important for any country with ambitious nuclear power generation expansion plans to secure fuel resources," Jacobelli, at Bloomberg Intelligence, said.

"Given China's long term expansion plans for nuclear power, it is highly unlikely that the country will be self-sufficient," he added.

Still, there are few countries expanding their civil nuclear power sector, so uranium supplies should not be problem, Jacobelli pointed out.

Although the price of uranium is expected to climb in the long term, CGN is considering acquiring more assets to cope with demand.

The rise of civil nuclear power generation in China has been staggering with capacity doubling between 2010 and 2014 to about 20 gigawatts.

It is now almost certain to triple by 2020 to 58 GW annually, or the equivalent of providing electricity for at least 135 million households, Bloomberg Intelligence estimated.

And massive growth should continue into the next decade.

"Relative to constructing wind or solar facilities, the building of civil nuclear power plants is more complex as security is the number one priority," Jacobelli said.

"Nuclear power projects take about five years in the construction phase and that does not include planning and approval," he added. "A wind or solar facility of medium size takes less than a year."

But nuclear energy plays an "irreplaceable role in China's energy security", CGN Chairman He Yu pointed out. It also helps to reduce air pollution caused by coal-fired power generation.

He has called for the mass production of the country's homegrown third generation Hualong One reactor, suggesting that up to six civil nuclear plants should be built annually in the run up to 2020.

This would increase nuclear power capacity in China to at least 150 GW by 2030.
 
Securing power in the South China Sea: Beijing’s plans for floating nuclear reactors get US$150 million boost
Joint venture company is expected to develop new technologies to boost China’s maritime nuclear capabilities

PUBLISHED : Friday, 11 August, 2017, 7:10pm
UPDATED : Friday, 11 August, 2017, 8:10pm
Sarah Zheng
Kristin Huang

China has announced plans to bolster its maritime nuclear capabilities with the creation of a major new joint venture project, which could also provide the catalyst for the development of floating reactors in the South China Sea and beyond.

State-owned China National Nuclear Power announced on Thursday it was establishing the new company – with registered capital of one billion yuan (US$150 million) – in cooperation with Zhejiang Zheneng Electric Power, Shanghai Guosheng Group, Jiangnan Shipyard and Shanghai Electric.

The joint venture will seek to strengthen China’s nuclear power capabilities in line with its ambitions to “become a strong maritime power”, the company said in a statement.

It will also support China’s “Belt and Road Initiative”, which aims to boost trade and infrastructure links with nations across Asia and Africa.

The statement did not say how or where the technologies will be used, but observers said it is likely they will be deployed in areas such as the South China Sea.

In a separate notice the state power giant said the new company will also seek to promote the development of nuclear-powered vessels.

Wang Yiren, vice-director of the State Administration for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence, said earlier this year that the expansion of China’s nuclear energy capabilities was a vital part of its five-year plan. The country will prioritise the development of a floating nuclear power platform in order to support its offshore oil and gas activities, and its presence in the Paracel and Spratly Islands, he told state media.

Wang’s comments came after Beijing said in a white paper last year that it was developing floating nuclear power plants to facilitate the exploration of maritime resources.

China Securities Journal reported last year that China could build up to 20 floating nuclear plants in the region to “speed up the commercial development” of the South China Sea.

Beijing has increasingly been flexing its muscles in the South China Sea, with the development of artificial islands and more frequent naval patrols. It has declared sovereignty over 85 per cent of the region and is engaged in multiple territorial disputes with its neighbours.

Collin Koh, a military expert from the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Singapore's Nanyang Technology University, said maritime nuclear power plants have a wide range of uses, and their presence would have both symbolic and practical purposes.

As well as producing electricity for Chinese infrastructure in the disputed waters, they could offer a long-term solution to the country’s water supply problems with the provision of desalination facilities, and support China’s status as a maritime power, he said.

Such facilities will also enable China’s military to take a step closer to developing a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, he said.

“China sees securing the ability to develop marine nuclear tech as a manifestation of its maritime power status,” Koh said. “It will enhance Beijing’s staying power and assert its claims, as military garrisons and civilian personnel living on those remote outposts would be able to sustain themselves better [and therefore stay longer].”

Carlyle Thayer, a regional security expert at the Australian Defence Force Academy, said that if nuclear power plants were built in the South China Sea, Beijing would have to provide security for them.

“It makes living conditions and life there much improved, and it’s a sign of Chinese permanence,” he said. “The more infrastructure China puts on there ... they can say, we’re only doing necessary defence to protect our people and our facilities.”

Although the nuclear power plants would have both military and civilian uses, it would “raise the cost of the conflict” in the region, he said.

Kai Ji-jung, chair professor of nuclear engineering at City University of Hong Kong, said that while the technology for floating nuclear plants is not yet mature, countries such as China and the US are putting “tremendous amounts of effort” into developing it.

Floating plants are typically much smaller than onshore ones, with no more than a quarter of the electricity production capability, he said.

“Their purpose is to be mobile, so they can float to any harbour or any island, so you have remote electricity,” he said.



Securing power in the South China Sea: Beijing’s plans for floating nuclear reactors get US$150 million boost | South China Morning Post
 
CGN in talk to build first nuclear power plant in Poland
chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2017-07-25 15:56

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A worker walks past a gas circulator in the turbine hall at EDF Energy's Hinkley Point B Nuclear Power Station in Bridgwater, southwestern England. [Photo/Agencies]

Energy giant China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN) is in talks to build Poland's first nuclear power plant, the company said in a statement on Monday.

A Polish delegation headed by Andrzej Piotrowski, deputy minister of energy visited the Shenzhen-based company earlier this month. Piotrowski met his Chinese counterpart Li Fanrong in Beijing. The two countries signed a memorandum on nuclear cooperation for civil use.

The Polish delegation visited Dayawan nuclear plant and Hualong One reactors project, according to the statement released on CGN's website.

The discussion heralds the State-owned energy giant's increasing interest in the European market, trailing its project in Britain.

CGN signed the 18-billion-pound Hinkley Point C power plant agreement last September with French energy firm EDF and the British government. The project has been hailed as a gateway to promote Chinese nuclear technology.

"The UK has a very high standard for nuclear energy, especially in the aspect of its safety. If Hualong One could enter the British market, it means that the nuclear technology of China comes very close to those of developed countries," Zhao Chengkun, former director of China's National Nuclear Safety Administration, told China Business News.

Poland government plans to build two nuclear power plants with a total capacity of six million kilowatts, the statement noted.

Companies including France's Areva and EDF, the US' Westinghouse and Canada's SNC-Lavalin Nuclear are also eyeing to take part in the race, according to Polish media.

Tan Xinyu contributed to this story.
@Piotr @TaiShang @grey boy 2 @Han Warrior

Congratulations for China and Poland :cheers:
 
Ghanaian reactor at full power after fuel conversion
11 August 2017

Ghana's research reactor has achieved full power operation following its conversion to run on low-enriched uranium (LEU) instead of highly-enriched uranium (HEU). It is the first of five such Chinese-supplied reactors outside of China to be converted.

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China's ambassador to Ghana was among those who witnessed GHARR-1 attaining full capacity using LEU fuel (Image: CIAE)

The China Institute of Atomic Energy (CIAE) announced today that the Ghana Research Reactor, known as GHARR-1, achieved full power with LEU in its core at 12.27pm yesterday.

GHARR-1 is a low-power research reactor with maximum thermal power level of 30kW. It is a commercial type of the Miniature Neutron Source Reactor (MNSR) designed, manufactured and constructed by the China Institute of Atomic Energy. Originally fuelled with 90.2% HEU, the reactor is designed for use in universities, hospitals and research institutes, mainly for neutron activation analysis, production of short-lived radioisotopes, education and manpower development. The GHARR-1 reactor - located at the National Nuclear Research Institute of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC) - started operations in December 1994.

In 2006, efforts were initiated to convert Chinese-designed MNSRs from HEU to LEU fuel. The GHARR-1 is the first of five such MNSR reactors outside of China eligible for conversion and fuel return to China. Under a project involving China and Ghana, as well as the USA and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the HEU core was removed from the reactor in August 2016 and a new LEU core installed. This operation was completed last month.

The CIAE said the project to convert the Ghanaian MNSR to LEU has created "strong technical support and valuable experience" for converting other MNSRs abroad.

The US Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration is cooperating with Nigeria, China and the IAEA to convert Nigeria's MNSR in 2018.

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News



Ghanaian reactor at full power after fuel conversion
 
China pips US in race to start the world’s first meltdown-proof nuclear power plant
China has 20 nuclear power plants under construction, more than any other country on earth. With Sanmen, the industry is hoping to get the nod to build more reactors at home, and even export the AP1000 technology.
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At a small peninsula facing the East China Sea in Sanmen county in Zhejiang province sits the world’s most advanced nuclear reactor, and China’s clarion call to the clean energy industry.

Some day over the next two weeks, the power plant will start loading more than 100 fuel assemblies into the honeycomb core of its AP1000 reactor with a pair of robotic arms, people at the site said.

The arms will move at a snail’s pace, not only because each assembly costs more than 10 million yuan, but their fine metal rods hold millions of thumb-size uranium pallets which together can emit enough heat for more than one gigawatt of electricity, enough to power Tibet’s entire grid.

Many people are waiting with bated breath for Sanmen to go online, because the AP1000 “is a simple, genius solution to reduce the risk of nuclear meltdown,” said Xi’an Jiaotong University’s nuclear science professor Shan Jianqiang, the author of several university texts on reactor safety and operation. The commencement of Sanmen “can be a shot to the arm for the nuclear industry, which has been mired in trouble at home and abroad,” he said.

The AP1000, designed and made by Toshiba Corp’s Westinghouse Electric subsidiary, is equipped with an overhead water tank that can flush the reactor’s core and keep it cool even if every water pump ceases to function in a blackout. Hot water would rise as vapour, dissipating energy from the core’s chain reaction through a heat exchanger into the atmosphere, condense and return to the tank. As long as there is gravity, the cycle would continue without human intervention.

In plain language, the reactor is designed to be meltdown-proof.

Compared with current technology, the AP1000 reactor is theoretically 100 times safer, requires 80 per cent less piping, 85 per cent fewer control cables, and need a third fewer pumps.

A competing design is Europe’s Evolutionary Power Reactor (EPR), which theoretically matches the AP1000’s safety standards as it uses a container to catch the melted core in an accident to prevent radioactive leaks. Two EPR reactors are under construction in Taishan in Guangdong province, with the first scheduled for commissioning before the end of 2017, and the second by the first half of next year.

The impending fuel loading in Zhejiang, the final step before the reactor begins operation, would put China on the map as the first country to begin running arguably the most advanced power plant, overtaking the reactor designer’s home turf, where work has ceased on two reactors in South Carolina. Work on two AP1000 reactors are still underway in the neighbouring state of Georgia.

Sanmen’s birth was a long time coming, and has probably earned the dubious honour as China’s most severely delayed energy project. Construction began with much fanfare in 2009 after a 40 billion yuan (US$6 billion) investment between the United States and China, with plans to fire up the first of two reactors in 2013.

But the building site sat idle for years, awaiting the US supplier to redesign the reactor’s main pump -- which features so-called dual-use technology found in American nuclear submarines -- and obtain US exports approval, according to people familiar with the project.

The 2011 nuclear reactor meltdown in Japan’s Fukushima prefecture added to Sanmen’s delays, as it prompted the Chinese government to call an emergency halt on every power plant in China pending safety reviews, including Sanmen. Safety inspectors wanted Sanmen’s design to incorporate lessons learned from Fukushima’s meltdown, which added more delays.

Sanmen’s launch date was finally postponed from June to the end of this year, while Westinghouse filed for bankruptcy in March.

“We sincerely hope there will be no more delays,” a Westinghouse spokesperson in China said in response to the South China Morning Post. “The first AP1000 reactor is not only important to China, but the world.”

If the AP1000’s birth in China was difficult, its conception in its home country was almost doomed from the start. The US hadn’t built a new nuclear plant ever since an accident at the Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania in 1979.

Westinghouse’s AP1000, approved by nuclear authorities in the mid 2000s, was seen as the key to a new age of safe, accident-proof nuclear power industry.

The days of America’s “Nuclear Renaissance,” a term coined over a decade ago to describe a revival of cleaner alternatives to fossil fuel, were gone, said George Borovas, Tokyo-based partner and head of global nuclear group at Shearman & Sterling.

With a sharp drop in natural gas prices after the 2008 global financial crisis and surging supply of shale gas in the US, gas-fired power has become more competitive against nuclear power, he said.

At least some aspects of the dimming prospects of US nuclear energy are self inflicted. President Donald Trump’s Energy Independence Executive Order in March not only dismantled his predecessor’s 2015 Clean Power Plan, but also provide a disincentive to invest or develop any technology in clean energy, including nuclear power.

But America’s loss was China’s gain.

“The AP1000 technology has already been transferred to China and the Chinese projects are pretty close to commission, regardless of what the U.S project developers are going to do with their projects,” Borovas said.

China needs nuclear energy to reduce its dependence on fossil fuel imports, and to help the government meet its target of cutting emissions and pollution, he said.

Adding to the allure is the large number of jobs created, and the prospect of a lucrative export business in nuclear expertise and hardware. It’s no surprise then, that China’s state-owned and state-managed nuclear industry has jumped on the bandwagon with gusto.

“The nuclear industry is to embrace the biggest opportunity in recent years,” said Wang Shoujun, president of Sanmen’s owner China National Nuclear Corp. (CNNC), wiring on his company’s website.

The Chinese state has given generous capital to not just nuclear power, but also small reactors, commercial reactors on floating platforms for offshore power generation, fast neutron reactors, molten salt reactors, accelerator-driven reactors, fusion power, and expects to create the world’s first stable-burning artificial sun for power generation within decades.

“In the nuclear power industry, you need long term stability, at least on project financing, which cannot be left entirely to the free market,” Borovas said. “China is developing the right model to support its long-term objective of clean, base-load power generation.”

China has 20 nuclear power plants under construction, more than any other country on earth. With the commissioning of Sanmen, the industry is hoping to get the nod to build more reactors at home, and even export the AP1000 technology.

Chinese researchers have even incorporated the best of AP1000 and EPR to conceive the Hualong design, featuring a top-side water tank and a catchment container. A Hualong reactor was sold to Pakistan, where construction began in 2015 scheduled for commissioning in late 2021. Another is currently awaiting the UK government’s review to build a plant.

Not everybody shares China’s optimism.

“While the deployment of AP1000 in China will be welcomed news for an otherwise beleaguered industry, it’s not clear that the conditions that could allow it to be successful there will prevail elsewhere,”said A.J. Goulding, a principal at London Economics International, an energy and infrastructure consulting firm. “To the extent that nuclear has a future in jurisdictions with low natural gas prices, limited load growth, and environmental sensitivities, it is in smaller, modular nuclear technologies.”

If there’s any doubt that China is leading the field, S.C. Electric & Gas and Santee Cooper, two energy vendors that had co-funded and led the construction of two AP1000 reactors in South Carolina, scrapped their project on July 31.

S.C. Electric, which had already spent US$9 billion of tax dollars on the project, estimated that it needs another US$7 billion for completion, which their customer the state grid can’t afford.

Earlier this year, the CNNC struck a deal with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to build a travelling wave reactor, a next-generation nuclear power technology with much higher fuel efficiency and little radioactive waste compared to today’s reactors. Chinese nuclear scientists were not at all surprised that Gates chose China instead of the U.S for the next step in clean energy.

“The heyday of the U.S nuclear industry was in 1970s. They were our role model,” said professor Shan of Xi’an Jiatong University. “But all those talents are now retired or gone. The current generation is no longer be able to build a new plant due to the lacking of engineering experience and technical expertise. It is sad.”



China pips US in race to start the world’s first meltdown-proof nuclear power plant | South China Morning Post
 
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China launches nuclear reactor container based on homegrown technology
By Qu Qiuyan Source:Global Times Published: 2017/8/21 22:58:39

China's first domestically developed third-generation nuclear reactor container using Hualong One technology was launched on Sunday, which an expert said would benefit China and the countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative.

The reactor container for the No.5 Unit nuclear reactor in Fuqing, Southeast China's Fujian Province, was developed by China First Heavy Industries (CFHI). The container was handed over to China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) on Sunday, the People's Daily reported.

The launch of the reactor container shows that China possesses the ability to independently research and develop the third-generation nuclear technology, and that China's nuclear equipment and manufacturing ability has reached the international level, according to CNNC's website.

Gui Liming, an expert on China's nuclear safety system at Tsinghua University, told the Global Times that the reactor container is China's first independently designed and manufactured water reactor with a capacity of millions of kilowatts.

Compared to the second generation, the third-generation water reactor equipment is much more advanced in terms of safety and capacity, Gui noted.

The launch of the reactor container marks a big step in China's nuclear industry development, which will not only benefit the country but also other countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative which urgently need to develop their own nuclear power.

By November 2016, China had reached intent of cooperation with more than 20 countries, including Argentina, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Egypt and Saudi Arabia on projects using Hualong One technology, the People's Daily reported in November 2016, adding that a total of six nuclear generator systems using Hualong One were under construction.

CFHI, the manufacturer of the reactor container using Hualong One technology, told the Global Times on Monday that the third-generation reactor's structure is more complex compared with that of the second generation, which requires stricter standards.

CFHI said that the overall intensive processing technology was first adopted in manufacturing the reactor container using Hualong One, which guarantees a higher precision of each part of the container.

Up to 85 percent of the Hualong One equipment is domestically manufactured, including core devices such as reactor pressure vessel and steam generator, ensuring that Hualong One is safe and economical, the Xinhua News Agency reported in May, citing Yang Ming, a member of the Hualong One overseas project management.

China plans to reach 58 million kilowatts of installed nuclear capacity by 2020, according to the Xinhua report.

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