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State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC) announced on Sunday that phase one construction of its Lianjiang nuclear power plant started on September 29. As the country’s first nuclear power plant with super-large cooling towers, it is expected to reduce the amount of sea water used and to generate up to 70.2 billion kWh annually after its construction. 

With a total investment of 130 billion yuan ($18.1 billion), the Lianjiang nuclear power plant is designed to have six pressurized water reactors, which can last for 60 years. The plant is scheduled to be operational in 2028, and it is the first nuclear project in China to have a recirculating seawater cooling system and super-large cooling towers.  

The Lianjiang Nuclear power project is SPIC’s first coastal nuclear power project in South China’s Guangdong Province. As part of an integrated energy base, the power plant is expected to run in conjunction with hydrogen plants and power storage stations in the area. 

The super-large cooling towers are designed to transfer the heat of the power plant to the atmosphere to reduce the amount of cooling seawater used, and to lower the heat of the drainage.  

With super-large cooling towers, nuclear power plants can be more friendly to the marine environment and costal economy. It also allows nuclear power plants to be built in coastal areas where seawater is insufficient for direct cycle cooling, according to thepaper.cn. 

To enhance energy security and promote green development, the State Council, China’s cabinet, approved the construction of two nuclear power projects – Zhangzhou Phase II in East China's Fujian Province and Lianjiang Phase 1 in South China’s Guangdong Province – in September 2022. 

Since the beginning of 2023, construction has begun at Unit 4 of the Sanmen nuclear power plant, Haiyang nuclear power Unit 4 and Lianjiang nuclear power Unit 1, thepaper.cn reported.