Over the past decade, China has added 37 new nuclear reactors, bringing its total to 55, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency. During the same period, the United States, which leads the world with a total of 93, added only two new buildings.

China aims to install six to eight nuclear reactors a year. China's nuclear regulator says the country has the capacity to add eight to 10 new units a year. China's State Council has approved the construction of 10 nuclear reactors by 2022. Overall, China currently has 22 nuclear reactors under construction, far more than any other country.

At the same time, the development of nuclear power in Western countries has stalled for a variety of reasons. First, reactor construction requires significant upfront investment and takes years to complete. And the industry is heavily regulated, which creates considerable headwinds. China, by contrast, has paved the way for nuclear power by providing cheap loans to state-owned energy companies, as well as land and licenses. In addition, nuclear suppliers can also receive "feed-in tariff" subsidies.

According to the International Energy Agency, the price of nuclear power in China is about $70 per megawatt-hour, compared with $105 in the United States and $160 in the European Union.

It is understood that China issued opinions on achieving the "double carbon goal" in October 2021, and strive to achieve carbon peak by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060. Nuclear power is a kind of high quality, high density and zero emission clean energy. China has seen nuclear technology as an important way to help decarbonize its energy sector. The 14th Five-Year Plan for Modern Energy System proposes to develop nuclear power in a safe and orderly manner, and by 2025, the installed capacity of nuclear power operation is expected to reach about 70 million kilowatts. In China, second generation nuclear energy system from Qinshan phase I.

The independent third-generation nuclear power units such as Hualong One and Guohe One have completed research and development and even commercial operation, and then the high-temperature gas-cooled reactor with the characteristics of the fourth-generation nuclear energy system has been connected to the grid for the first time, and the domestic nuclear power generation has ranked second in the world. Editor/Xu Shengpeng