Components of the Taishan nuclear power plant, currently under construction and located about 80km west of Zhuhai and Macau, were reportedly made in China, although they were previously believed to have been manufactured in France, according to a report by FactWire.
The news outlet reported that a contract released by the French supplier AREVA revealed that the first two units delivered to the Taishan nuclear power plant were made in Japan and China. Unit 1 was made by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, in Japan, and half of the core components of Unit 2 were made in China, including the reactor pressure vessel, steam generators, pressurizer, and reactor coolant lines.
Taishan nuclear power plant
These components belonging to Unit 2 were all manufactured by Dongfang Electric Corporation, a Chinese state-
owned company.
Woo Chung-Ho, former scientist of Atomic Energy of Canada, voiced his concerns about this to FactWire; “I didn’t know if China was able to produce a pressure vessel. This component is quite special, it’s large. Every step in the manufacturing process requires strict control.”
According to the report, China has been hoping to launch Unit 1 sometime next year, whereas French engineers who were sent to Taishan for the project, told FactWire that it could only be launched in 2018 at the earliest. Zhang Shanmeng, chairman of China General Nuclear Power Group, the company responsible for the Taishan nuclear project, did not respond to any questions regarding the issue.
Last year, two nuclear reactors for the aforementioned plant reportedly did not undergo the same quality tests as those applied to a similar reactor in France, which was found to have weak spots prone to cracks. These tests were followed by France tightening its nuclear safety regulations, according to a report by South China Morning Post. Staff reporter
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