Fuqing unit 5 to get its dome

Construction of the world's first Hualong One nuclear reactor unit at Fuqing in eastern Fujian province will reach a milestone with the installation of the dome on the containment vessel due to take place on Thursday or Friday.

The installation marks the completion of its civil construction work and the start of equipment installation, said Yu Peigen, deputy general manager of China National Nuclear Corp, one of the country's largest nuclear companies.

The fifth and sixth units at Fuqing use the domestically developed Hualong One pressurized water reactor design, a homegrown third-generation reactor, which Yu said is ready to be constructed on a mass scale.

"After some 30 years of learning and innovation, China has mastered the independent design and manufacturing of third-generation nuclear power facilities, and has shifted from being a novice to a pioneer in the nuclear sector worldwide," Yu said at a news conference in Beijing on Wednesday.

"The third-generation Hualong One reactor, being a star export, will also lead to more equipment manufacturers going abroad."

The Hualong One demonstration project is making smooth progress, and there is still a lot of room for China's nuclear capacity to grow, he added.

Xing Ji, chief designer of Hualong One at CNNC, said the pilot project will help pave the way for China's nuclear power equipment industry to go global.

With Chinese nuclear technologies gaining a presence worldwide in nations including the United Kingdom, Romania and Pakistan, CNNC has successfully exported six nuclear power units and eight reactors to at least seven countries, and has established links with more than 40 countries for further deals spanning the full nuclear industrial chain, he said.

According to a recent deal signed during the Belt and Road Forum, China will supply Argentina with two nuclear power reactors, including one Hualong One pressurized water reactor. The deal with Argentina to build a reactor in the South American nation starting in 2020 is the second one after CNNC's construction of a Hualong One reactor in Pakistan.