China conducted a successful trial of the No. 1 generating unit of
its first commercial heavy water nuclear reactor in Haiyan County
of Zhejiang province.
Qian Jianqiu, chief engineer of the Qinshan No. 3 Nuclear Power
Company, said the generating unit reached its first critical point,
indicating the beginning of nuclear fission.
Kang Rixin, board chairman and general manager of the company, said
two other major experiments incorporating the unit in the power
network and operating it at full capacity would be carried out
before the unit enters commercial operation.
It
is expected the No. 1 unit will begin power production and be
incorporated in the power network in November and operate at full
capacity by the end of the year.
With a designed generating capacity of 28 million watts for its two
generating units, the reactor was made in China with imported
technology from Canada.
The reactor, which has a lifespan of 40 years, is expected to
produce about 10 billion kwh of electricity each year after both
units are operational.
The reactor project is listed as the third stage nuclear energy
development of Qinshan nuclear power station.
Three pressurized reactors developed by China on its own were
installed and put into operation at the station during the first
two-stage development in 1980s.
( September 23, 2002)