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Agency Details Russian-Chinese Nuclear Energy Cooperation Projects

Posted on: Sunday, 30 October 2005, 12:00 CST

Text of report by Russian news agency Interfax

Beijing, 30 October: China has asked Russia to consider designing a prototype generating set with a fast-breeder reactor for China, a source in a Russian delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Zhukov has told Interfax.

According to the source, the capacity of this reactor may reach 600 MW. It is expected that the generating set unit will have a closed fuel cycle.

The source also said that Russia may have a promising future regarding the construction of new nuclear power stations in China because the latter is planning to increase the capacity of its atomic power stations to 40 GW by 2020.

The source recalled that the first generating set of the Tianwan nuclear power station was launched in October [in the coastal city of Lianyungang in east China's Jiangsu Province]. Its industrial use is to begin shortly. The source noted that, pending successful completion of the first and second generating sets of the Tianwan station, Russia may be asked to carry out the second stage of the project and build the third and fourth generating sets there. Atomstroyeksport [atomic construction company] has submitted to China a draft project to build a VVER 1000 [pressurized water] reactor with a life span prolonged to 60 years. Russia has proposed such a generating set in a tender to build two new nuclear power stations in China.

In addition, the sides intend to focus on stepping up participation in constructing third-generation nuclear power stations in China.

According to the source, there are plans to set up an interdepartmental working group to settle taxation while passing on to China the technology for making fuel for VVER 1000 reactors.

The source described the project to build a floating nuclear power plant as another promising direction for developing bilateral cooperation in nuclear power engineering, and added that the sides had noted progress in building the first floating nuclear power plant in Severodvinsk. "Russia and China will continue to implement the framework contract to build a floating nuclear power plant," the source said.

According to the source, the two countries are trying to find funds for building the main bloc of the floating nuclear power plant as quickly as they can by using Chinese export credits.

In addition, the issue of building a platform ship for a floating nuclear power plant at a Chinese shipyard should be resolved as soon as possible.

The source named as another promising project the two countries' collaboration to build a fast-breeder reactor in China. The experimental reactor is expected to be launched on 31 December 2008.

Source: BBC Monitoring Former Soviet Union

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