The second phase of the nuclear energy heating project in Haiyang city, East China's Shandong Province has begun operation, Global Times reported.
The nuclear energy heating project has become the world's largest cogeneration unit after the operation of the second phase of the heating project of 4.5 million square metres, which has replaced 12 local coal-fired water boilers and benefited 200,000 residents in Haiyang, making the city the first "zero carbon" residential heating city in China.
The nuclear power plants extract high-pressure residual steam from the power unit as the heat source, which then undergoes a multi-stage heat exchange through the station, finally transferring the heat to residential homes through the municipal heating pipeline network. At present, Haiyang's nuclear energy heating project is heating 30 million square metres of residential homes in the city.
A senior official from the Energy Administration in Shandong said that the province will focus on building a 10MW nuclear power base on the Jiaodong Peninsula and actively promote the comprehensive use of nuclear energy for heating and other purposes. Earlier China’s State Power Investment Group Co (SPIC) said “Nuanhe 1” – the second phase of the National Energy Nuclear Energy Heating Commercial Demonstration Project – had been put into operation six days ahead of schedule.
As a result, the heating fee for residential heating in Haiyang has been reduced by one yuan per square metre compared to previous years.
Since September 2020, Shandong Nuclear Power Company (SDNPC) – a subsidiary of SPIC and the owner of Haiyang plant has been working with local thermal company Fengyuan Thermal Power to develop the heating pipe network. At the end of October, trial operation using steam from Haiyang's two AP1000 reactors was carried out and in November the heating network began low-temperature trial operation.
According to SDNPC, with slight modifications, Haiyang 1&2 could heat 30 million square metres. With the completion and commissioning of subsequent units at Haiyang, the plant could eventually provide heating to more than 200 million square metres of housing within a 100km radius, avoiding the use of about 6.62 million tonnes of coal.
Up to six CAP1000 units are planned for the Haiyang plant. SPIC says it will actively explore larger-scale, higher-efficiency, and longer-distance heating, further realise the modularisation and standardisation of nuclear power cogeneration, and provide replicable templates and standards for the large-scale development of nuclear power heating.
