China’s National Development and Reform Commission has approved construction of the second phase of the Hongyanhe nuclear power station, which will include setting up of two million-kilowatt generators at the facility located in the north-eastern part of the country.
The country has given its nod for nuclear power generation nearly four years after Japan’s Fukushima disaster shook the world.
China suspended approvals for new nuclear facilities in the country and carried out a nationwide safety review after the March 2011 mishap, reports Xinhua news agency.
The construction, however, still awaits license approval from the National Nuclear Safety Administration.
The new nuclear power generating units are located in the Liaoning Province. They will involve the use of technology developed by China General Nuclear Power Group.
Liaoning Hongyanhe Nuclear Power, the developer for the facility, initiated its construction in 2007.
The power plant is designed to house six generating units of the million-kilowatt class.
The first phase of the development involved setting up of four generating units at the facility, two of which started operations in 2013 and 2014. Meanwhile, the third unit for the power plant is expected to be commissioned within the first half of 2015, and the fourth one is still under stages of development.
China intends to restart nuclear power generation in the eastern coastal areas, only after ensuring safety standards.
Presently, a mere 2% of the total power generated in the country is derived from nuclear energy sources, which is considerably lower than the world average of 15%.
