China marks fifth anniversary of CANDU plant

QINSHAN, CHINA - China's Third Qinshan Nuclear Power Co. (TQNPC) hosted a celebration ceremony today to mark the 5th anniversary of the completion of the Qinshan Phase III CANDU nuclear power plant project in Zhejiang Province.

Hailed by China's President Hu Jintao as a "model for Canada-China cooperation" and the largest infrastructure project ever undertaken between Canada and China, the Qinshan Phase III power plant incorporates two 728 Mwe CANDU 6 pressurized heavy-water reactors designed and built by Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL).

AECL, along with its Canadian and international partners and TQNPC, completed the power plant 112 days ahead of schedule and 10.6 per cent under budget.

"The Qinshan Phase III nuclear power plant project is a tremendous example of our CANDU project management model of on-time, on-budget delivery," said AECL's President, CANDU Reactor Division, Dr. Ken Petrunik, speaking at the anniversary celebration in Beijing.

"It was at Qinshan that we pioneered new, integrated electronic engineering tools and open-top construction techniques - both of which greatly streamlined and reduced our construction schedule," stated Dr. Petrunik.

On-time, on-budget delivery is critical to the success of the global nuclear industry as plans for new nuclear builds continue to grow.

"Countries interested in nuclear power should look to the Third Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant as the model for successful construction and operation of a nuclear facility," said Dr. Petrunik as he presented TQNPC officials with a congratulatory award. "The Qinshan units have repeatedly achieved record capacity factors resulting in a significant amount of clean, safe electricity generation."

Dr. Petrunik added, "In preparing for future projects, the skills and expertise gained by AECL during the construction of the Qinshan project provide a solid foundation for deployment of our new ACR-1000."