First Hualong One reactor achieves initial criticality

October 27, 2020, 12:01PMNuclear News

Unit 5 at China National Nuclear Corporation’s (CNNC) Fuqing nuclear power plant has achieved initial criticality, becoming the very first Hualong One reactor to reach that milestone, the company announced on October 22. If all goes according to schedule, the unit will enter commercial operation later this year.

Fuel loading for Unit 5 began on September 4, following the issuance of the reactor’s operating license by China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment. The loading of 177 sets of fuel assemblies was completed on September 10.

Also known as the HPR1000, the Hualong One is a Chinese-designed, 1,000-MWe Generation III pressurized water reactor. Fuqing-5’s twin HPR1000, Fuqing-6, is scheduled to start contributing power to the grid next year.

Located in China’s Fujian Province, Fuqing also houses four 1,000-MWe CPR-1000 PWRs, with commercial start dates of November 2014, October 2015, October 2016, and September 2017.

To continue reading, log in or create a free account!

Related Articles

China starts construction on 2 reactors

February 21, 2024, 3:03PMNuclear News

Construction formally began this week on two new nuclear reactors in China.The China National Nuclear Corporation held a ground-breaking ceremony to mark the first phase of construction of the...

Pakistan’s Karachi-3 connected to grid

March 8, 2022, 9:30AMNuclear News

Unit 3 at Pakistan’s Karachi nuclear power plant has been connected to the national grid, China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) announced on March 4, making it the second Hualong One...

HPR1000 passes U.K. design assessment

February 14, 2022, 12:05PMNuclear News

The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) and the Environment Agency (EA) have found the UK HPR1000 reactor suitable for construction in the United Kingdom, the regulators jointly announced last...

China’s Tianwan-6 up and running

June 11, 2021, 12:59PMNuclear News

Unit 6 at the Tianwan nuclear plant has entered commercial operation, China National Nuclear Corporation announced last week. The domestically designed ACPR-1000 pressurized water reactor...