Hainan will start work on its first nuclear power plant in the city of Changjiang this year, the provincial government has said.
Established on Dec 8, Hainan Nuclear Power Plant Co Ltd of China Nuclear Engineering Group will develop approximately the 17 billion yuan ($2.5 billion) project, which will become operational in 2014, Wu Meijing, assistant to the general manager of the firm, told China Daily yesterday on the sidelines of the second full session of the regional people's congress that opened on Monday.
The first phase of the plant will have two 650-megawatt reactors with a combined capacity of 100 billion kWh per year, he said.
Hainan has suffered from a shortage of electricity in recent years because of its fast growing economy and lack of resources.
It is estimated that the shortage will be 5.6 million kWh by 2020.
"Hainan must find a new source of energy to solve this problem," Wu said.
"That's why it decided to develop the nuclear plant."
The Changjiang plant will be safe and environmentally friendly, he said.
"We have considered every factor that will affect the safety of the plant, such as earthquakes, tsunamis, typhoons and some military actions," he said.
"It will also emit less carbon dioxide than a coal-fired power plant of the same capacity," he said.
The plant will also help boost the local economy and enhance the reputation of the county, Changjiang county Party secretary Tang Jianguang said.
"The Changjiang nuclear power plant will bring huge profit to the county and create thousands of jobs," he said.
Professor Wang Yiwu from the Institute of Contemporary Economic Theory at Hainan University said the plant can help strengthen industry, especially during the global financial crisis.
"The huge investment in the plant will help Hainan cope with the economic slowdown and aid the province's development," he said.
China aims to have 60 gigawatts of nuclear power capacity by 2020. It currently has 9 gigawatts of capacity.
Source: China Daily
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