Construction on the nuclear island of the first unit of the nuclear power and heating plant in Xuwei District, Lianyungang City, Jiangsu Province began on January 16.
As the first nuclear plant under the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-30), it is invested in and held by China National Nuclear Power Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of China National Nuclear Corporation.
The nuclear plant marks several global firsts: the world’s first project to integrate Hualong One, a pressurized water reactor, with a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor; the first commercial use of the latter technology; and the first nuclear facility built solely under a nuclear engineering, procurement and construction model.
The plant is designed mainly to supply industrial heating, while also providing electricity. Steam from the Hualong One reactor is engineered to heat desalinated water to produce saturated steam, which is then reheated using the steam from the high-temperature gas-cooled reactor. The twice-heated steam, a necessary resource for the petrochemical industry, is expected to meet market demands and significantly reduce energy consumption.
The first phase of the project includes a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor and two Hualong One reactors. Upon completion, it will generate an annual supply of 32.5 million tons of steam and churn out over 11.5 billion kilowatt-hours of power. This phase alone is projected to save 7.26 million tons of standard coal, equivalent to 19.6 million tons of carbon dioxide.
The plant will supply high-quality, low-carbon steam to the petroleum industry operation in Lianyungang and other facilities across the Yangtze River Delta, spearheading the region’s low-carbon transition.
(Executive editor: Yuan Ting)
