Concrete pouring for the base slab of unit 4's nuclear island began on 28 December, CNNC said. This means that work has begun on both Hualong One units in the same year: first concrete was poured for Changjiang 3 in March. The two units are expected to begin commercial operation in 2026, and represent a total estimated investment of CNY40 billion (USD6.4 billion), according to China Huaneng group.
CNNC began construction of two demonstration Hualong One units at its Fuqing plant in Fujian province in May and December 2015, respectively. The first of these, Fuqing 5, was connected to the grid in November 2020 and entered commercial operation in January this year. The second, Fuqing 6, achieved criticality earlier this month. Two demonstration Hualong One (HPR1000) units are under construction at China General Nuclear's Fangchenggang plant in the Guangxi Autonomous Region are expected to start up in 2022. Hualong One units are also under construction at Zhangzhou in Fujian, Taipingling in Guangdong, and San'ao in Zhejiang.
The Hualong One promoted on the international market is called the HPR1000. Karachi unit 2, the first of two HPR1000 units to be built at Pakistan's Karachi site, began commercial operation in May this year.
The Changjiang nuclear site is already home to two operating CNP-600 pressurised water reactors - Changjiang 1 and 2 - which are operated by Hainan Nuclear Power Company and entered commercial operation in 2015 and 2016 respectively. CNNC also this year began construction of a demonstration ACP100 small modular reactor at the site. The multi-purpose 125 MWe pressurised water reactor - also referred to as the Linglong One - is designed for electricity production, heating, steam production or seawater desalination.
The island province of Hainan is China's southernmost point. Energy policies published in 2019 by Hainan Province Development and Reform Commission specify that nuclear power will become the primary source of electricity for the island, which has a population of close to 10 million.
