CHINA RESEARCH AND INTELLIGENCE

Research Report of 
Chinese Nuclear Power 
Industry, 2009 
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2009 

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 Research Report of Chinese Nuclear Power Industry, 2009

Description
The energy demands and energy saving & emission reduction are the double pressures for the fast
development of Chinese economy. The nuclear power, however, is the most competitive solution
to change Chinese energy structures and meet the energy demands.

By the end of 2008, total 11 nuclear power generating sets had been in operation with the total
installed capacity of 9.07 million kilowatts, accounting for 1.3% of the total installed power
capacity. The annual nuclear power production was 68.394 billion KWh, accounting for 2% of the
total power production in the country.

The nuclear power production in 19 countries all over the world accounts for more than 25% of
the total power production, including 76.8% in France, 19.4% in America and 27.5% in Japan.

Compared with the thermal power, the nuclear power in China still has no price competitiveness.
On the one hand, it attributes to the comparatively low price of the coal. The statistics shows that
the investments in the thermal power are about 4 thousand Yuan (580 USD) per kilowatt, but it
needs 10 thousand Yuan (1.46 thousand USD) per kilowatt for the nuclear power, 6 thousand Yuan
(880 USD) differences. On the other hand, it spends more time on constructing the nuclear power,
which takes about 70 months, but the thermal power takes about 30 months. The expense of the
nuclear power and the low exploitation costs and economical usage of the coal resources lead to
long-term dependency of Chinese energy system on the thermal power.

It needs to realize the production in large scale so as to cut down the costs of the nuclear power.
The performance of the nuclear power equipments is 30 years’ longer than that of thermal power
equipments and the cost composition makes it competitive in the later period. The investments in
the nuclear power fixed assets costs 50 to 60 percent of the total investments or higher, but the
thermal power only accounts for 30 to 40 percent. The nuclear fuels cost 20% of the total
investments, which is 50% or higher for the thermal power. Meanwhile, for the operation costs,
the nuclear power occupies 15% of the total costs, but 10% for the thermal power. Because of the
giant fuel costs of the thermal power, the costs of the nuclear power are comparative low after
depreciation allowance.

Meanwhile, there is no definite direction for the technical route choice of Chinese nuclear power,
which is also an important factor affecting the nuclear power construction process in China. The
present nuclear power technologies in China, including French technologies in Dayawan nuclear
power plant, Russian technologies in Tianwan nuclear power plant and Canadian technologies in
the third phase of Qinshan nuclear power plant, have not formed standard systems for far. The
time and costs spent on the nuclear power technologies and the achievements in China are far
behind those in France, Japan and South Korea.

Apart from the costs and choice of the technical route, the fuel supplies and the safety of the

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 Research Report of Chinese Nuclear Power Industry, 2009

nuclear power will also face the challenges. Because of the limited natural uranium reserves in
China and the strict LAFA supervision over the uranium mine trade, China’s uranium mine import
from Australia and Canada etc is involved in the complicated international political and military
relations. Besides, in order to guarantee the safety, the construction and operations of the whole
nuclear power plant need to take the power demands, population density and hydrogeology into
consideration.

From 4-trillion-Yuan (570 billion USD) domestic demands expansion issued by Chinese
government in the end of 2008 to 580-billion-Yuan (84.6 billion USD) electrical investment plan
to cope with the international financial crisis and Adjustment and Revitalization Plan of
Equipment Manufacture, the development of Chinese nuclear power receives wide attentions.

Chinese government plans to the installed capacity of the nuclear power in China will reach to 5%,
the electrical power production will reach to 8% and the installed capacity of the nuclear power
exceeds 70 million kilowatts by 2020. If calculation by the installed capacity of 70 million
kilowatts in operation in 2020 and 10 million kilowatts capacity in process, the investments in
Chinese nuclear power construction total 720 billion Yuan (105 billion USD) in 10 years.

In accordance with the previous experiences, the investments for purchasing the nuclear power
equipments account for about 40%. Generally, the proportion of the investments in nuclear power
equipment, conventional island equipment and the auxiliary equipment is 6:3:1. According to the
40% equipment investments in the total investments, the investments in Chinese nuclear power
equipments will be about 288 billion Yuan (42 billion USD) from 2009 to 2020. The huge
investments will provide opportunities for Chinese and international nuclear power equipment
manufacturers.

At present, the fight of international nuclear power equipment giants in Chinese market has
changed into the technical route competition. In China, the most disputable topic is to adopt which
generation nuclear power technology, the second, the semi-second or the third. If choosing the
semi-second technology, it is obvious far behind. But if choosing the third generation technologies,
represented by EPR of Framatome and AP1000 of Westinghouse, it is much more disputable,
because no nuclear power plant has been constructed in the world at present, which adopts the
third generation technologies. People highlights the development of the nuclear power, but it also
faces the technical route choice, the place choice of the coastal nuclear power plant shifting to the
inland.

In the beginning of 2009, the Dafan nuclear power project in Hubei Xianning had passed through
approval from Chinese government. Meanwhile, three nuclear power plants are planning to be
constructed in Xishui, Yangxin and Zhongxiang in Hubei, in which the Xishui nuclear power
projects have submitted the Development and Reform Commission of P.R. of China. Also, the
nuclear power project plans in Hunan and Sichuan etc have been on the agenda. The nuclear
power enclave process in China is gradually speeding up and there will be a great mass fervor of

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 Research Report of Chinese Nuclear Power Industry, 2009

nuclear power construction.

On 3rd April, 2009, the two biggest enterprises in Chinese nuclear power industry, China Nuclear
Engineering Group CO and Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding Co., Ltd, signed a civil
engineering contract of 8 nuclear power sets in Jiangsu Yangzhou, which have been the largest
quantity and the most amount civil engineering project in Chinese nuclear power construction
history. In accordance with the agreement, China Nuclear Industry Huaxing Construction Co. Ltd,
the affiliated company of China Nuclear Engineering Group CO, will undertake the civil
engineering of 8 nuclear island sets with the contract amounts exceeding 5 billion Yuan (800
million USD), which is involved the civil engineering of 8 nuclear island sets in three nuclear
power plants, including Zhejiang Ningde, Guangdong Yangjiang and Guangxi Fangchenggang.

The huge investments in Chinese nuclear power industry also provide investment opportunities for
Chinese and global equipment manufacturers, fuel dealers, construction dealers and operators.

This report analyzes Chinese nuclear power industry from the aspects of government policies,
power demands, supplies, nuclear power equipments, project construction and operations. It is of
high reference values for the investors to be familiar with the present situation of Chinese nuclear
power industry and master the investment opportunities.

More following information can be obtained in this report:

- Present Development Situation of Chinese Nuclear Power Industry
- Present Situation of Chinese Nuclear Power Construction Industry
- Development Environments of Chinese Nuclear Power Industry
- Compositions of Chinese Nuclear Power Industry Chains
-Present Technology Situation of Chinese Nuclear Power Industry
- Major Enterprises and Their Operations of Chinese Nuclear Power Industry
- Influences of International Financial Crisis on Chinese Nuclear Power Industry
- Prediction on the Investment in Chinese Nuclear Power Industry, 2009-2020
- Prediction on the Development Trends of Chinese Nuclear Power Industry
- Investment Opportunities of Chinese Nuclear Power Equipment Industry

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