Nuclear Power Plants in the World
-As of December 31, 2002-
Every year, the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum (JAIF) releases a report tracking the status of nuclear power plants worldwide, entitled "Nuclear Power Plants in the World." This year's survey was based on a questionnaire given to 65 electric utilities and other nuclear organizations in 28 nations and region, and illustrates the situation as of December 31, 2002.
Momentum in Asia: Six Units Commissioned in Japan, Korea and China; India Initiates 500 MW FBR
Record Number of Units in Operation and Total Installed Capacity
As of the end of 2002, there were 436 nuclear power plants in operation worldwide, four units more than in 2001 (eight units commissioned, four units closed down), with a total installed capacity of 373,727 MW (432 units, 366,286 MW in 2001). There were 39 reactors under construction, with a capacity of 34,696 MW (43 units, 41,271 MW in 2001), with 27 more units with a capacity of 25,360 MW at the stage of being planned (35 units, 26,604 MW in 2001). Both the number of reactors and total installed capacity were record highs, exceeding the previous highs of 434 units in 1996, and 366,286 MW in 2001 respectively.
Eight Reactors with a Capacity of 8.2 GW Commissioned in Four Countries
In the year 2002, eight nuclear power plants began commercial operation in four countries: Japan's Onagawa-3 (BWR, 825 MW), France's Civaux-1 and-2 (PWRs, 1,516 MW each), China's Qinshan-II-1 (PWR, 642 MW), Qinshan-III-1 (CANDU, 700 MW) and Lingao-1 (PWR, 990 MW), and South Korea's Yonggwang-5 and?6 (PWRs, 1,000 MW each). Over the past ten years, the number of newly commissioned reactors has reached ten seen in 1993, but the 2002 figure did match the eight reactors commissioned in 2000. As a result, moreover, of newer plants being larger, the combined capacity of 2002's eight new units is 8,189 MW.
France's Civaux-1 and-2 had already connected the grid and, with the final approval of the French safety authorities, they started commercial operation. As a result, there remain no reactors in Western Europe either under construction or being planned.
Within Northern Europe, however, the Finnish parliament in May 2002 approved a fifth unit for that country. Reactor type and output (1,000-1,600 MW) are expected to be decided before the end of 2003. (For purposes of these surveys, that unit will be officially classified as "being planned" as soon as reactor type and output are decided.)
Of the eight newly commissioned reactors, all but the two in France are in Asia: Japan (1 unit), China (3 units) and South Korea (2 units) attesting again to the reality of active nuclear development in the Asian region. In China, the 9th Five-year Plan (1996-2000) includes construction of eight units and has seen steady progress, with three commissionings to the end of 2002, bring the number of units in operation to six. That was a doubling both of the number of operating units in China and that nation's installed capacity (now 4,600 MW), moving it up the global list of installed capacity from 20th to 14th position. Of the five remaining units (of the eight in the plan), the Lingao-2 was commissioned in January 2003 (it is classified as "under construction" in this survey as of December 2002), and the other four are expected to be completed by 2005.
In Korea, construction is focused on the "Korean Standard Nuclear Plant" (KSNP), a domestic 1,000-MW PWR. In 2002, Yonggwang-5 and-6, the third and fourth KSNPs, were commissioned, and orders for four more KSNP units (Shin-Kori-1 and-2, and Shin-Wolsong-1 and-2) have been placed. In Japan, Tohoku Electric Power Co.'s Onagawa-3 was commissioned and the Japan Atomic Power Company's Tsuruga-3 and ?4 (APWRs, 1,538 MW each), Japan's first advanced PWRs, were included in the national power-development basic plan in 2002.
India: Construction of 5 Units Launched; FBR Project Officially Started
Within the Asian region, it is once again evident that India is proceeding positively with nuclear power development. In 2002, construction of Kudankulam-1 and-2 (VVERs: Russian-designed PWRs, 1,000 MW each), India's first reactors in the 1,000-MW class, together with Kaiga-3 and-4 (PHWRs, 220 MW each) and Rajasthan-5 (PHWR, 220 MW), was launched, bringing the number of reactors under construction to seven. Construction of Rajasthan-6 (PHWR, 220 MW) was launched in January 2003 (it is classified as "being planned" in this survey as of December 2002). Total capacity of reactors under construction is nearly 4,000 MW, substantially more than that of those in operation.
In addition, the Indian Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) has initiated a plan to construct a 500-MW prototype fast breeder reactor (PFBR) at the Indira Gandhi Center for Atomic Research (IGCAR), under the umbrella of DAE. Excavation and civil engineering for PFBR, which follows an experimental FBR now in operation (FBTR, 13 MW), have already started. Construction is expected to commence soon, with commissioning in 2009.
Older Generation Reactors Being Closed Down
The current JAIF survey has confirmed the closure of four reactors: Britain's Bradwell-1 and-2 (GCRs, 129 MW each) and Bulgaria's Kozloduy-1 and-2 (PWRs, 440 MW each). All were of the first or early second generations. The two British units were closed down under a plan to close Magnox reactors (GCRs) issued by British Nuclear Fuels plc (BNFL) in May 2000. GCRs are early gas-cooled reactors commissioned in the 1950s and 1960s. BNFL intends to close down the remaining 16 operating GCRs one by one.
In contrast, the Kozloduy-1 and -2 were closed down under agreements between Bulgaria and the European Union (EU) as a precondition of that nation's joining the union. Both units were VVER-440 Model V-230, from the first generation of Soviet-designed pressurized light-water reactors, and the EU insisted on closure of both for safety reasons. With 15 member countries currently, the EU is expanding to include the developing free-market economies of Central and Eastern Europe. In 2004, a first group of ten countries will join. In these circumstances, early closure of (in addition to Kozloduy-1 and-2) Kozloduy-3 and-4 (PWRs, 440 MW each), Slovakia's Bohunice-1 and-2 (PWRs, 440 MW each) and Lithuania's Ignalina-1 and-2 (1,500 MW each) are anticipated. Ignalina NPSs are graphite-moderated reactors (LWGR, RBMK in the Russian language), the same type as at Chernobyl. All of these reactors are, however, major power sources in those countries, and problems of substitute power, economic impacts, and funds for decommissioning require further work before plans can be finalized.
In addition, Russia's Obninsk (LWGR, 6 MW) saw nearly 48 years of operation come to an end in April 2002. Since commissioning on June 27, 1954, it supplied electricity and played the role of pioneer in development of subsequent reactors. The site will be reborn as a museum of nuclear development history. (The reactor was not included in calculations for this survey, as its output was below threshold criteria.)
Two Czech Reactors in Trial Operation
Nuclear Power Plants achieving operation at full power in 2002 were Temelin-1 (PWR, 981 MW) of the Czech Republic and China's Lingao-2 (PWR, 990 MW). Temelin-1 reached full power in January 2002 after beginning generation of electricity at the end of 2000. In June 2002, it began a year and half of trial operation. Temelin-2 (PWR, 981 MW), under construction, is now at the stage of trial operation, following first criticality in May 2002 and the start of grid connection in December 2002. When both reactors, the latest VVER-1000 designs (Russian-designed PWRs), started up, there was pressure against them from neighboring countries, but their safety was demonstrated through EU efforts. Both of Temelin-1 and-2 are expected to enter commercial service as early as 2003 and 2004, respectively.
