This Day, That Year

Item from Dec 22, 1991, in China Daily: Qinshan, China’s first nuclear power station, came on stream on Sunday, marking a giant step to ease the energy famine in the country’s eastern industrial centers.

Since Qinshan station was connected to the power grid on Dec 15, 1991, it has been operating safely for 26 years.

The project began commercial operation in April 1994, making China the seventh country in the world to build and operate nuclear power plants.

However, the country’s nuclear power development was put on hold after the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan in 2011, with approval for new nuclear plants suspended and a nationwide safety review launched after the incident.

Construction resumed in 2012.

Currently, the country operates 37 nuclear reactors with 19 under construction, according to the National Energy Administration.

By the end of 2020, the country aims to have 58 gigawatts of nuclear power capacity in operation and at least 30 million kilowatts under construction. It will make China the country with the second-largest capacity, behind the United States, in terms of nuclear power.

Nuclear power currently contributes about 2 percent of China’s electricity, data from the China Electricity Council shows.

The International Atomic Energy Agency commended the country’s efforts and accomplishments in nuclear safety after conducting its first nuclear security advisory mission to the nation, the China Atomic Energy Authority said in September.

The report notes that along with the rapid growth of China’s nuclear power sector, authorities should accelerate the making of laws and regulations to better govern the sector.