China’s State Council at a meeting presided over by Premier Li Qiang, approved construction of 10 new units at five nuclear power projects – Fangchenggang Phase III, Haiyang Phase III, Sanmen Phase III, Taishan Phase II and Xiapu Phase I. These include eight Hualong One reactors and two CAP1000 reactors.

China General Nuclear (CGN) confirmed it had received approval for units 3&4 at its Taishan NPP in Guangdong province with 1,200 MWe Hualong One (HPR1000) pressurised water reactors. Also approved were units 5&6 at its Fangchenggang NPP in the Guangxi Autonomous Region with 1,208 MWe Hualong One reactors. CGN said that it was undertaking preparatory work for the new units, construction of which will begin when the Permit for Nuclear Power Station Construction has been obtained from the National Nuclear Safety Administration.

China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) confirmed approval for units 5& 6 at its Sanmen NPP in Zhejiang province where it plans to build two 1,215 MWe Hualong One reactors. Two more Hualong One units were approved as a joint project between CNNC and Huaneng Power International for the Xiapu NPP site in Fujian province where two CFR-600 sodium-cooled pool-type fast-neutron reactors are already under construction.

State Power Investment Corporation was approved to construct two CAP1000 reactors – the Chinese version of the Westinghouse AP1000 at the Haiyang NPP in Shandong where two AP1000 units are operating and two CAP1000 units are under construction.

China Daily said the ten projects represent a combined investment of more than CYN200bn ($27.4bn). This is the fourth consecutive year that China has approved at least 10 new reactors. China is set to become a global leader in operational nuclear power capacity by 2030, China Daily said, citing “experts and company executives”.

As of the end of 2024, China had 102 nuclear reactors in operation, under construction, or approved for construction, with a combined installed capacity of 113 GWe, according to the China Nuclear Energy Development Report 2025, which was released at the Spring International Forum on Sustainable Nuclear Energy Development. According to the report, investment in nuclear power engineering construction in 2024 reached a record high of CNY146.9bn, some CNY52bn more than the previous year.

“China’s nuclear energy development is entering a new period of strategic opportunities,” Yang Changli, rotating chairman of the China Nuclear Energy Association (CNEA) told the Forum. “By 2030, the installed capacity of operational nuclear power is expected to reach 110 GWe. Nuclear power will play a vital role as a key substitute for high-carbon energy sources and a mainstay for the stability of the new power system.”

According to CNEA, China has 28 nuclear reactors under construction, with a total installed capacity of 33.65 GWe as well as 58 operational commercial nuclear reactors, with a combined installed capacity of 60.96 GWe.

“China’s nuclear power sector has entered a peak period of large-scale construction,” said Dong Baotong, Vice-Minister of Ecology & Environment. “With more units expected to be approved in the future, China’s scale of units under construction is higher than the combined total of units under construction in countries worldwide.”

CITIC Securities has estimated that, with the accelerated approval of nuclear power projects, investment in new NPPs in China is expected to reach CNY231bn by 2025, which will further stimulate the related supply chain and enable China to achieve its carbon emission reduction targets sooner than planned.

Hou Yingdong, an official with the Ministry of Ecology & Environment, told a news conference that China’s nuclear power units have been operating with good safety standards for years. Hou noted that China’s NPPs are all located far from earthquake-prone areas, and the impact of natural disasters such as heavy rain, floods and tsunamis has been fully considered. “The safety of the nuclear power plants is guaranteed in the face of extreme natural disasters,” he said.

China has also established the world’s largest monitoring network for radiation environment quality, and the radiation environment level around nuclear facilities has remained good for years,

CNEA said that, by 2024, China had achieved 100% domestic origin for key main equipment for nuclear power and ensured the independent control of key component technologies. It added that the country’s independent research and development in the sector continues to achieve new breakthroughs.