China builds massive-capacity nuclear generator

File photo of an employer of Dongfang Electrical Machinery Co Ltd working on a 1,150 mW nuclear generator completed by the company in 2009. [Kou Yuanlin / Asianewsphoto]

CHENGDU - Dongfang Electrical Machinery Co Ltd (DFEM), a major Chinese power generating equipment manufacturer, has completed construction of a 1,750 mW nuclear generator and started transporting it to a nuclear power plant in South China on Saturday.

The 1,750 mW generator currently has the biggest per-unit installed capacity among the nuclear generators in the world, according to the DFEM, which is based in Southwest China's Sichuan province.

The generator is being sent to the Taishan nuclear power plant in South China's Guangdong province from the company's production base in Deyang city, Sichuan province.

DFEM will provide two such generators for the nuclear power plant.

DFEM has produced 14 nuclear generators so far with a total installed capacity of 15,790 mW.

The Taishan nuclear power plant is a joint venture of China Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding Co Ltd (CGNPC) and Electricite de France.

According to CGNPC, the first-phase project of the nuclear power station got a total investment of 50.2 billion yuan ($8.13 billion), and would include the construction of two units using the Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) technology, with each unit capacity up to 1,750 mW.

The two units of the first-phase project are to be respectively put into commercial operation in 2013 and 2014, and will annually generate 26 billion kilowatt-hours on-grid energy when completed.