The Chinese nuclear power market 

 

At present, the global energy pattern is undergoing profound changes, and nuclear energy, as a low-carbon and efficient energy, is playing an increasingly critical role in the process of global energy transformation. As a major energy consumer, China's nuclear energy industry has developed rapidly on the road of promoting energy structure optimization and green and low-carbon development, and has become an important force in the global nuclear energy field. It has shown a dynamic development

Installed Capacity

 

- According to the existing project construction cycle, by 2025, the installed capacity of nuclear power in China is expected to reach about 70 million kilowatts. In 2024, there were 57 operating nuclear power units in China, with an installed capacity of 59.4317 million kilowatts. The installed capacity of operating nuclear power is expected to reach about 65 million kilowatts in 2025.

 

Construction Projects

In 2024, 11 nuclear power units were newly approved, the largest number of approvals in history. In 2025, a number of coastal nuclear power projects with mature conditions will be approved and started, and the construction of nuclear power projects under construction will be steadily promoted. There are multiple projects under construction or planned to start, involving six provinces including Shandong, Zhejiang, Liaoning, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Fujian, with an installed capacity of over 27 million kilowatts.

 

Technological Development

The third-generation nuclear power technology of "Hualong One" has been applied on a large scale. Each single unit can generate more than 10 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, reducing carbon emissions by 8.16 million tons, and it has strong international competitiveness. China has made breakthrough progress in the field of small modular reactors (SMR). At the end of 2024, at the Changjiang Nuclear Power Base in Hainan, the grid connection of the main power supply of the world's first onshore commercial small reactor "Linglong One" was completed.

 

Policy Environment

The National Energy Administration issued the "Guiding Opinions on Energy Work in 2025", clarifying the three core objectives of energy supply security, green and low-carbon transformation, and development quality and efficiency. The positioning of nuclear power as a low-carbon base load power source has been further highlighted. Local governments are enthusiastic about promoting the development of nuclear power. Cities and provinces such as Shanghai, Shandong, and Fujian regard nuclear power as a new engine to promote economic transformation and green development.

 

Market Prospects

Installed capacity growth: It is expected that by 2030, China's nuclear power in operation installed capacity is expected to reach 120 million kilowatts, power generation may jump to the world's first. With the successive production of a series of projects under construction, as well as continued project approval and construction in the future, the installed scale of nuclear power will maintain a stable growth trend, and the proportion of the national installed power will gradually increase.

 

Expansion of market scale: The nuclear energy industry chain continues to extend, in addition to the field of power generation, the application of heating, hydrogen production, seawater desalination and other fields is gradually launched, which will drive the development of related industries and further expand the scale of the nuclear energy market. According to the forecast of China Nuclear Energy Industry Association, by 2025, China's nuclear technology application output value can reach trillion market scale, of which industrial application output value accounts for more than 50%, medical nuclear technology output value accounts for about 20%, and industrial development prospects are broad. 

 

 

 

中国核电市场

 

目前全球能源格局正经历深刻变革，核能作为一种低碳、高效的能源，在全球能源转型进程中扮演着愈发关键的角色。中国作为能源消费大国，在推动能源结构优化和绿色低碳发展的道路上，核能产业发展迅猛，已成为全球核能领域的重要力量。呈现出蓬勃发展的态势

 

装机容量

 - 按照现有项目建设周期，到2025年，中国核电装机容量预计将达到7000万千瓦左右。2024年全国运行核电机组57台，装机容量5943.17万千瓦，2025年在运核电装机预计达到6500万千瓦左右。

 

建设项目

 - 2024年新核准11台核电机组，为历年核准数量之最。2025年将核准开工一批条件成熟的沿海核电项目，稳步推进在建核电工程建设。多个项目在建或拟开工，涉及鲁、浙、辽、粤、桂、闽6省，装机容量超2700万千瓦。

 

技术发展

- “华龙一号”三代核电技术已规模化应用，单台机组年发电超100亿度，可减少碳排放816万吨，拥有很强国际竞争力。我国在小型模块化反应堆（SMR）领域取得突破性进展，2024年末在海南昌江核电基地，完成全球首个陆上商用小堆“玲龙一号”主电源倒送电工作。

 

政策环境

- 国家能源局印发《2025年能源工作指导意见》，明确能源供应保障、绿色低碳转型与发展质量效益三大核心目标，核电作为低碳基荷电源的定位进一步凸显。地方政府推动核电发展热情高涨，上海、山东、福建等地将核电作为推动经济转型、绿色发展的新引擎。

 

市场前景

装机规模增长：预计到2030年，中国核电在运装机容量有望达到1.2亿千瓦，发电量可能跃居世界首位。随着一系列在建项目的陆续投产，以及未来持续的项目核准与建设，核电装机规模将保持稳定增长态势，在全国电力装机中的占比也将逐步提升。

 

市场规模扩大：核能产业链不断延伸，除发电领域外，在供热、制氢、海水淡化等领域的应用逐步展开，将带动相关产业发展，进一步扩大核能市场规模。根据中国核能行业协会预测，到2025年，我国核技术应用产值可达万亿市场规模，其中工业应用产值占比超过50%，医用核技术产值占比约20% ，产业发展前景广阔。