Nuclear News Weekly Roundup – 02/05 - 02/09

CGN is Authorized to Develop China’s First Nuclear Power Heating Project

In a recent symposium on nuclear heating in Northern China, NNSA issued its approval for CGN together with Tsinghua University to develop China’s first nuclear heating project. The two parties will begin a series of preliminary works, including site selection, land use, water supply, emergency response, public communications, etc. There have been many cases of nuclear heating projects around the world and China has ample preparatory work on related research and studies. A low-temperature heating reactor is a product of integrated design with high safety. It has great potential market demand and can be applied in various fields. For example, it can be used in power supply, heating, water and gas supply to provide heating for communities and industrial parks, as well as comprehensive power supply in remote areas.

CNNC: Merge with CNECC will Complete Our Industry Value Chain, will Accelerate the Pace of “Going Out”

China National Nuclear Company (CNNC) held a press conference on February 9th where the spokesperson Mr. Pan Jianming responded to the interests and concerns over CNNC’s merger with China Nuclear Energy Construction Company (CNEC). On January 31st, SASAC announced that CNNC will be absorbing CNEC (without compensation) and CNEC will no longer listed as an independent SOE supervised by SASAC. CNEC was the world’s only enterprise with a continuous three-decade record of focusing on NPP construction. It is capable of building forty nuclear units at the same time. For its part CNNC has comprehensive nuclear technology capabilities. The merger allows CNNC to complete a full value chain in the nuclear industry. The merger helps to integrate the resources of both sides and will accelerate the pace of exporting nuclear technology. Mr. Pan also delivered an update on situation of the four HPR1000 sthat CNNC is building in China and Pakistan: all the units are under construction on schedule and are currently in the installation phase. He also reviewed CNNC’s work in the international market last year, including the contracts to build a HWR and a HPR1000 in Argentina, the agreement to cooperate with Saudi Arabia on Thorium resources and the establishment of the Global Innovation Nuclear Energy Technology Company which is a joint venture with TerraPower to develop the Gen IV Traveling Wave Reactor (TWR).