Official: China to build 1st inland nuclear plant in Hubei

WUHAN, Dec. 7 (Chinese media) -- The central Chinese province of Hubeiis preparing

for the construction of the country's first inland nuclear plant, a local

planning official said on Sunday.

Local authorities have relocated residents from the land designated for the

plant in Xianning City, and completed road construction for the project, the

official from the city's planning commission said.

The cost of the first two phases of the project, with an installed capacity

of 4 million kw, is estimated at 50 billion yuan (7.3 billion U.S. dollars). The

third phase could cost 45 billion yuan.

Construction will start as soon as the environmental assessment report is

approved, the official added.

China Guangdong Nuclear Power Group (CGNPG) and the Hubei provincial

government agreed in March to jointly build the plant. CGNPG and Hubei Energy

Group established a joint venture, known asHubei Nuclear Power Ltd. Co., in June

to develop nuclear power in the province.

China has 11 nuclear plants at six sites, all on the east coast, with a

combined installed capacity of 9.07 million kw. The capacity of the CGNPG

project is equivalent to 43.5 percent of the total.

Faced with an energy crunch resulting from fast economic growth, China

plans to develop more nuclear power. The country plans to have 40 million kw of

installed nuclear capacity by 2020, which would be 4 percent of projected energy

supply, or double the current level.