First concrete at Tianwan 3

Saturday, 29 December 2012

Construction of a new reactor was started this week in China. The Russian-designed model is the fourth to be inaugurated since China resumed approvals for new plants at the end of October.

Articulated machines pour in concrete for Tianwan 3's basemat (Image: Rosatom)

The new build is at the Tianwan site in Jiangsu province. An AES-91 VVER-1000 unit designed by Gidropress and supplied by Russian state firm Rosatom, it follows two similar units at the site. A fourth is also contracted under terms sealed by an intergovernmental protocol earlier this month. Each of the VVERs is rated to produce 1060 MWe, while four further potential units of similar size are foreseen by Chinese planners.

AtomStroyExport is the main contractor, supplying the nuclear island worth about 30% of the project value. The reactor system components will be sourced from the Russian supply chain, while an Areva-Siemens instrumentation and control system will be used. Jiangsu Nuclear Power Corporation is responsible for the remaining 70% - the civil work, turbine island with equipment and related infrastructure.

Tianwan 3 is slated to begin power generation in 2018, with unit 4 expected to follow one year later, operated by China National Nuclear Corporation.

New new build

 
A new nuclear reactor is officially under constuction after the first concrete related to nuclear safety is poured. This follows years of planning and months of groundwork and took place for Tianwan 3 on 27 December.

Tianwan 3 is now the 29th large power reactor under construction in China - and the fourth to be approved and begin work since the Fukushima accident of March 2011. Chinese authorities halted approval for new units in reaction to the accident, which was triggered by a tsunami and allowed to worsen by a lack of emergency preparation by the Japanese industry and government.

Having taken 18 months to review existing Chinese plants and national regulatory systems, the country went back to approving new reactors in late October. Since then work has started on four units: Fuqing 4 in Fujian province, Yangjiang 4 in Guangdong province (both 1080 MWe CPR-1000 units) and the Shidaowan HTR-PM project - a demonstration high-temperature gas-cooled reactor in Shandong province.

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News