China will start building at least nine nuclear plants in the next two years, state media reported on Wednesday, as it aims to reduce its dependence on power plants fired by dirty coal. Construction for two of the nine nuclear plants in Guangdong, two in Zhejiang, one in Fujian and one in Shandong, will begin at the end of this year or early next year, the China Daily reported, citing the China Atomic Energy Authority (CAEA).
But the exact locations and construction start dates for the other three, in inland Hunan, Hubei and Jiangxi provinces respectively, have yet to be decided, the report said. The report did not say how much the plants would cost, but Song Gongbao, a CAEA official, was quoted as saying the investment will be worthwhile as they will "contribute to China's sustainable development."
China has four nuclear plants under construction currently. Of the nine new plants, six will adopt the AP1000 third-generation technologies from US-based, Japanese-owned Westinghouse, and the other three will use home-grown second-generation technologies, Song was quoted as saying.
China's current nuclear power capacity is only 9 gigawatts (GW), or about 1.3 percent of its total. In 2006, it set a national target of 40 GW by 2020, and has lifted the target to 60 GW or 5 percent of its total capacity, a goal experts have said was already a challenge.
China is considering raising its already ambitious goal to expand nuclear power in the next decade by aiming for 70 GW of generating capacity by 2020. Many local governments have established joint-venture nuclear companies in the hopes of winning the right to build a nuclear plant for the funds and the jobs the project can bring.
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