China is on course to build its first ever third-generation nuclear power station in Sanmen, in east China’s Zhejiang province. (Source: CNTV.cn)

BEIJING, Jan. 29 (Xinhuanet) -- China is on course to build its first ever third-generation nuclear power station in Sanmen, in east China’s Zhejiang province. The technology at the core of the plant is known as AP1000, a US developed "third generation" technology that’s at the heart of the largest ever joint China-US energy project.

A last inspection for this 800 ton steel structure.

This containment vessel will be lifted up to a height of 66 meters to cap the nuclear power unit. It marks the completion of the main structure housing the reactor itself.

The reactor and the steam generator are already sitting inside, waiting to be installed. Three years on from the beginning of the project, and security remains very tight.

Li Haitao, State Nuclear Power Engineering Company, said, "We follow the rules of the US nuclear regulatory commission, as well as China’s own nuclear safety laws and regulations. Our team consists of talented people from both China and the US. And we have a comprehensive system of quality control."

Since Japan’s Fukushima disaster, preventing cooling system failure has become a key safety priority for the nuclear industry worldwide.

The Sanmen plant uses US AP one thousand technology, otherwise known as third generation nuclear technology. It means the plant’s emergency cooling system can function without electricity for 3 days.

Ting Qian, Sanmen AP1000 Deputy Manager of Westinghouse Industrial Products, said, "The risk is 100 times lower. It can work without power, the gravity and natural circulation will keep the vessel in water condition."

The Sanmen plant will start generating electricity in 2014, and is expected to supply 15 percent of Zhejiang province’s electricity by 2015.

It’s part of China’s overall plan to increase the proportion of nuclear power to 4 percent by 2020, double the current level.

Li said, "The electricity made by one nuclear unit here can save 3 million tons of coal, and decrease carbon emissions by 8 million tons."

(Source: CNTV.cn)