The internal protective safety dome has been installed on the inner containment structure at unit 3 of China’s Zhangzhou NPP in Fujian Province, according to China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC). The 370-tonne dome with a diameter of 45 metres, a height of almost 14 metres was installed after “a series of high-precision manoeuvres” using a crawler crane with a lifting capacity of 3200 tonnes. CNNC said this marks the transition from civil engineering to the installation of equipment laying a solid foundation for later installation, commissioning and connection to the electricity grid, providing a “good start” for the second phase of Zhangzhou NPP project.
Six Hualong One (HPR1000) reactors are planned for the site. Unit 2 began operation earlier in January and unit 1 has been in operation since January 2025 (Phase 1). Construction is underway for units 3&4 (Phase 2), while preparatory work for units 5&6 (Phase 3) is progressing steadily, according to China Nuclear Power Corporation (CNNC). Once fully completed, the Zhangzhou NPP is expected to provide about 60 TWh of electricity annually.
China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued construction licences for Zhangzhou 1&2 in 2019 to CNNC-Guodian Zhangzhou Energy Company, the owner of the Zhangzhou nuclear power project, which was created by CNNC (51%) and China Guodian Corporation (49%) in 2011. Construction of unit 1 began one week after the construction licence was issued, with construction of unit 2 starting in September 2020. In September 2022, China’s State Council approved the construction of two further Hualong One units as Phase 2. First concrete for the nuclear island of unit 3 was poured in February 2024, and for unit 4 the following September.
