The first nuclear power unit in the Yangtze River Delta is connected to the grid for power generation

On March 12, 2026 at 17:28, the first "Hualong One" nuclear power unit in the Yangtze River Delta region, Unit 1 of the CGN Zhejiang Sanao Nuclear Power Project, was successfully connected to the grid for the first time, marking the unit's official ability to transmit power to the grid and taking a crucial step towards full operation.

The construction of Unit 1 of San'ao Nuclear Power started on December 31, 2020. After grid connection and on-site verification, the unit operates stably and all technical indicators meet the design requirements. The next step for the unit is to enter on load trial operation, carry out power increase and various performance tests as planned, and it is expected to be officially put into operation for power generation in the first half of this year. The rapid development of intelligent economy in the Yangtze River Delta region has led to a significant increase in computing power demand and a continuous rise in energy consumption. The steady progress of the San'ao nuclear power project will provide stable clean energy support for the green and low-carbon transformation and intelligent economic development of the Yangtze River Delta.

Annual power generation is expected to exceed 54 billion kilowatt hours

Du Yanhui, Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of CGN Cangnan Nuclear Power Co., Ltd., stated that as an important component of energy security in the Yangtze River Delta, the San'ao Nuclear Power Project plans to construct six "Hualong One" nuclear power units, of which three have already started construction. After the completion of the project, the annual power generation is expected to exceed 54 billion kilowatt hours, which is close to the current total electricity consumption of Wenzhou City and can meet the annual production and living electricity needs of over 5 million people; Every year, it can reduce the consumption of standard coal by over 16.35 million tons and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 50 million tons, equivalent to adding more than 120000 hectares of afforestation area.

Widely utilizing digital and intelligent technologies

The project aims to create a "smart construction site" for nuclear power, achieving visual, automated, and intelligent control of the work site, which can reduce manual labor by about 700000 hours per year. At the same time, the first domestic intelligent management system for nuclear power plant radiographic films, which integrates digital management, AI intelligent evaluation, and intelligent plagiarism detection, will be put into use to achieve full process digital control. The system has been applied to over 40000 pipeline X-ray films during the installation phase of the nuclear island, with intelligent defect assessment detection rate and intelligent duplicate checking accuracy both exceeding 95%. Keywords: Hualong One, Yangtze River Delta, Clean Energy

For the first time, domestically produced welding machines and supporting processes have been fully adopted

In terms of advanced construction technology, the project has for the first time fully adopted domestically produced welding machines and supporting processes in the welding of nuclear power main pipelines in China, achieving a breakthrough in the localization of core equipment and processes; We are also innovatively applying the "Lego style" modular assembly technology for detachable prefabricated retaining walls in the "Hualong One" project of CGN. The 62 meter retaining wall components can be quickly assembled after prefabrication, effectively reducing construction costs and providing strong support for improving the quality and efficiency of nuclear power projects.Editor/Gong Ziwei