China Approves $25 Billion Nuclear Expansion as Energy Demand Soars
(Bloomberg) -- China approved eight new nuclear reactors on Friday, with the projects reportedly worth more than 170 billion yuan ($25 billion), accelerating its atomic buildout as the country seeks to power its economy without increasing carbon emissions.
The State Council, China’s cabinet, greenlit projects across four provinces, filings from state-backed power producers show. Among them are Huizhou Units 5 and 6 in Guangdong province, operated by a subsidiary of CGN Power Co., the nation’s top nuclear operator. Each unit will add 1,217 megawatts of capacity once complete — enough to power million of homes in China.
Approvals were also granted for China National Nuclear Power Corp.’s Zhuanghe project in Liaoning and Jinqimen facility in Zhejiang, alongside SPIC Industry-Finance Holdings Co.’s Laiyang development in Shandong, according to separate regulatory filings.
The approvals underscore Beijing’s drive to secure reliable, around-the-clock power as electricity demand continues to surge. While China leads the world in solar and wind installations, nuclear energy is vital to provide carbon-free baseload power to stabilize a grid vulnerable to the intermittent nature of renewables.
In March, the Chinese government set a target of 110 gigawatts of installed nuclear capacity by 2030 – a 76% surge from the end of last year. The rapid expansion is part of China’s efforts to overtake France and the US as the world’s largest nuclear generator before the decade ends.
Still, hitting those ambitions may prove challenging. China missed its previous targets of reaching 58 gigawatts by 2020 and 70 gigawatts by 2025 following a multi-year approval freeze after Japan’s 2011 Fukushima disaster, as well as post-pandemic supply chain bottlenecks.
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