CRI听力:Installation completed for pressure vessel of Hualong One nuclear power unit

The pressure vessel of the No. 5 reactor at the Fuqing Nuclear Power Plant in Fujian has been installed.

The facility is using Chinese designed-and-built third-generation Hualong One reactor technology.

The nuclear power unit is scheduled to be put into commercial use in 2020.

The pressure vessel is used to contain nuclear fuels. Chen Guocai is the general manager of Fuqing Nuclear Power Company of China National Nuclear Corporation.

"The pressure vessel is like the heart of the nuclear power unit. With the heart in place, it means the installation of the key components will begin. We will enter the testing and debugging stage in 2019, which is estimated to take about a year. It will be ready for electricity generation in 2020."

Key components of the nuclear power unit have also entered the installation stage.

Three steam generators, three primary pumps, one voltage stabilizer and one pressure vessel will be installed in the nuclear island.

Director of the Control Department of Fuqing Nuclear Power Plant Xiao Bo says all the equipment and components will be installed by 2019.

"According to our schedule, we will enter the debugging stage from the establishment and installation stage in May 2019. after 14 months' debugging from then, we will be ready for commercial operation in July 2020. That is to say, households in Fujian Province will be able to use power supplied by Hualong One at that time."

New technology has been used to improve the safety level of the reactor compared with the second-generation.

Wang Zhiqiang is the engineer of the design and management office of the Fuqing Nuclear Plant.

"The Hualong One uses a double containment design, with the thickness of each containment reaching more than 1.5 meters. It can prevent the release of radioactive substance into the environment. The outer layer is a reinforced concrete structure, which can ensure safety even in case of terrorist-related collisions by commercial aircraft."

The reactor also employs a passive safety system, which is able to guarantee the safety of the reactor without manual intervention in case of emergencies.

"If emergencies, such as power blackout, water supply cut off, earthquake and other extreme accidents occur in the nuclear reactor, it can discharge the heat by itself within 72 hours. No manual intervention is needed."

China has begun building the first overseas Hualong One project in Pakistan.

A few other countries, including Argentina and the United Kingdom, have also shown interest in the Hualong One nuclear technology.