Construction begins on Sanmen nuclear power plant's No. 4 unit in E China's Zhejiang

Workers prepare to pour concrete for the nuclear island of the No. 4 unit of Sanmen nuclear power plant in Taizhou city, east China's Zhejiang Province. (Photo courtesy of Sanmen Nuclear Power Co., Ltd.) 

The first slab of concrete was poured for the nuclear island of the No. 4 nuclear power unit of Sanmen nuclear power plant in Taizhou city, east China's Zhejiang Province, on March 22, with the approval of China's National Nuclear Safety Administration.

That marked the beginning of construction on the Phase II project of the Sanmen nuclear power plant, which is controlled by the China National Nuclear Power Co., Ltd. (CNNP), a subsidiary of China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC). It brought the total number of CNNP-controlled nuclear power units under construction to nine, with a combined installed capacity of nearly 10.13 million kilowatts (kW).

When completed, the No. 4 unit of the Sanmen nuclear power plant will be able to generate 10 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity and help reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 7.5 million tonnes a year, which is equivalent to afforestation of nearly 20,000 hectares.

A cement mixer arrives at the construction site of the No. 4 unit of Sanmen nuclear power plant in Taizhou city, east China's Zhejiang Province. (People's Daily Online/Li Qiaochu)

Photo shows the construction site of the nuclear island of the No. 4 unit of Sanmen nuclear power plant in Taizhou city, east China's Zhejiang Province.  (People's Daily Online/Li Qiaochu)

The first slab of concrete is poured for the nuclear island of the No. 4 unit of Sanmen nuclear power plant in Taizhou city, east China's Zhejiang Province. (People's Daily Online/Li Qiaochu)

A bird's-eye view of Sanmen nuclear power plant in Taizhou city, east China's Zhejiang Province. (Photo courtesy of Sanmen Nuclear Power Co., Ltd.)