China’s Ling Ao II 1080 MWe nuclear power plant to start commercial operation June 15

1. The second unit at China’s Ling Ao II nuclear power plant has been connected to the grid. The 1080 MWe Chinese-designed CPR-1000 pressurised water reactor (PWR) was synchronised with the grid on 3 May. It is now undergoing final tests prior to commercial operation which is scheduled to begin on 15 June, exactly five years after construction formally began. The reactor is the second CPR-1000 to start up, following its sister plant Ling Ao II unit 1, which entered commercial operation in September 2010. 17 CPR-1000s already under construction. Work is planned to begin on at least five more during 2011.

2.

The reactor building dome of unit 2 at the Yangjiang nuclear power plant in China was recently installed, 16 days ahead of schedule. Meanwhile, the second ring of the containment vessel of unit 2 at the Haiyang plant has also been lifted into place.

Plant constructor China Nuclear Engineering and Construction Corp (CNECC) said that the successful installation of the dome means that the project to build Yangjiang unit 2 now enters its next phase, when heavy reactor system components are installed within the building.

The Yangjiang plant will eventually host six domestically engineered CPR-1000 pressurized water reactors, generating around 1080 MWe each. It will be China Guangdong Nuclear Power Corp’s (CGNPC’s) second nuclear power plant after Daya Bay, also in Guangdong province. Construction of the first two units started in December 2008 for commercial operation in 2013. The second pair of units will follow closely, then the final two, with the last being completed in 2017.

Hoisting at Haiyang

The second steel ring of the containment vessel of unit 2 at the Haiyang nuclear power plant in eastern China’s Shandong province has also been lifted into place.

Haiyang 1 and 2 are expected to begin operating in May 2014 and March 2015 respectively.

The Haiyang site will eventually have six large reactors. In March 2009, the National Development and Reform Commission approved preliminary works for units 3 and 4, also to be AP1000 units. Construction of those units is expected to start soon.

3. Chubu Electric Power Company has agreed to comply with a request from Japan’s prime minister that it shuts down its Hamaoka nuclear power plant until its tsunami defences are strengthened. However, the company says that the plant is already adequately protected against tsunamis.

Under the request issued by NISA, Chubu will have to install additional air-cooled emergency diesel generators and stock spare parts for seawater pumps that run the residual heat removal system. Carrying out this work and satisfying NISA of the plant’s fitness to restart is likely to take many months.

4. An extended in-depth study has found no significant evidence of an increased risk of childhood leukaemia for children living close to the UK’s nuclear power plants.

The report, published by the independent Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment (COMARE), presents a new analysis of data on the incidence of leukaemia in children under five years of age living in the vicinity of 13 nuclear power plants in the UK, over the period 1969-2004. In addition, it considers additional factors not addressed in previous COMARE reports which the organisation says may account for differences in leukaemia risks in studies from other countries.

5. The men arrested close to the Sellafield site under anti-terrorism legislation have been released without charge, police said on 4 May

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