Fuqing pilot unit complete by 2020

Qian estimated the export value of every nuclear unit of the Hualong One design at around 30 billion yuan ($4.8 billion), the equivalent of selling 300,000 automobiles.

But that increases to 100 billion yuan if fuel supply and technical support are included.

Xing Ji, chief designer of Hualong One, said that 85 percent of the equipment for the reactors has been developed in China, and once into mass production, about 95 percent of the equipment used will be supplied by Chinese firms.

He said that the project will follow the very highest international safety standards using features such as double-layer safety shells that can withstand the impact of a large commercial airplane.

"We have improved all the existing emergency plans to ensure safety during construction and operation," he said.

CNNC, together with its largest peer China General Nuclear Corp, are already in a consortium to invest in two nuclear reactors using Europe-designed EPR technology at Hinkley Point C in southwest England.

The consortium is also planning to take a controlling stake in another nuclear project at Bradwell in Essex, near London using Hualong technology.