THE number two generating unit of the Tianwan nuclear power plant, a Sino-Russian cooperative project, has begun to operate at full capacity, according to an announcement by the China National Nuclear Corporation.
CNNC said that the second unit is operating at a stable 1.05 million kilowatts and all technical parameters are within set values.
Before its test operation, the unit passed a full-capacity safety check by the National Nuclear Safety Administration. After a debugging period, the No. 2 generating unit will officially start commercial operation.
CNNC said by midnight last Wednesday, the No. 2 generating unit had generated 468 million kilowatt hours of electricity and sent 422 million kilowatt hours to the power grid.
Tianwan nuclear power plant is the largest technological and economic cooperation project between China and Russia.
The Tianwan plant, in Lianyungang, a port city in Jiangsu Province, will have four generating units and space for four more.
In the first-phase development, which began in October 1999, two 1,060-megawatt AES-91 pressurized water reactors made by a Russian company were installed.
The first generating unit was connected to the grid in May last year. It began operating at full capacity on January 9. By May 1, it had generated 2.08 billion kilowatt hours of electricity, of which 1.86 billion kilowatt hours were transmitted to the grid.
In addition to the Tianwan plant, five more nuclear plants - the first, second and third phases of Qinshan nuclear power plant, Daya Bay and Ling'ao - are also connected to the grids.
The Chinese government is promoting the nuclear power sector by aiming at an installation of 40,000 megawatts by 2020. Even though the figure is high, it still only represents four percent of the total national capacity.