GlobalData: China to pass U.S. nuclear capacity in six years

September 10, 2020, 5:03PMNuclear News

China is on track to overtake the United States in nuclear power capacity by 2026, according to GlobalData, a U.K.-based research and analytics company.

More than 160 GW of nuclear capacity will likely be added globally between 2020 and 2030, some 66 percent of which is anticipated to take place in China, India, and Russia, the company reported on September 9. China alone is set to account for more than 50 percent (83 GW) of the new capacity, followed by India with 8.9 percent (14.5 GW) and Russia with 6.4 percent (10.5 GW). GlobalData also projects that during the same period, more than 76 GW of nuclear capacity will be retired.

What they’re saying: “The U.S., European countries, and Japan grew risk averse post the Fukushima meltdown and have been looking to cut down on their nuclear capacity by not reviving the projects that have aging infrastructure and are nearing the end of their commercial life,” said Somik Das, a senior power analyst at GlobalData. “With the nuclear divergence by the Western countries and others like Japan and Taiwan, the share of nuclear power generation is likely to occupy a back seat. However, technological advancements and the strong nuclear capacity expansion, mainly from China, India, and Russia, will ensure the current share of nuclear in the overall generation mix remains unchanged at 10 percent by 2030.”


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