In the middle of a dispute between several states in the South China Sea, China plans to send a fleet of nuclear reactors to the region by 2020.
The dispute over the region with a trade value of about US $ 3 trillion per year has been going on for a long time. Disputes between China and several Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam, the Philippines and Indonesia, concern many areas including the ownership of Spratly and Paracel islands. The dispute has even brought the Philippines to the United Nations over China’s claim.
The plan was announced by China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), which has invested about 1 billion yuan (US $ 150 Million) to create a new company. The new venture will use nuclear reactors supplied by China National Nuclear Power (CCNP) and leading ship manufacturers companies in the country. The ships will be equipped with a nuclear reactor ACP100, the cost of each ship is estimated at US $ 373 Million
Chen Xiangmiao, a researcher at the National Institute for the South China Sea said the floating nuclear reactor has many other uses. “The floating nuclear plant can provide the energy needs of the islands and coral reefs in the South China Sea, which will also provide environmental protection, weather observation, navigation and oil and gas development.”
Director of China’s State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense Wang Yiren said the floating nuclear reactor will play an important role in technological developments in China. The National Development and Reform Commission issued a five-year plan fund in March 2016 that explains China’s ambitions to expand the capacity of this nuclear plant. Earlier, in 2015 the Chinese government has approved a project to build a floating nuclear reactor by China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN).
CGN began the construction of the 200 Mw floating reactor in November 2016 with the goal to provide electricity, heat and desalination to the Chinese-made island in an area of about 3.5 million square kilometres. China’s decision to build a floating nuclear reactor in the South China Sea region will certainly cause concern for some parties related to the territorial claims dispute.
Environmental analysts fear the onset of damage to the plant due to the extreme weather that often occurs in the region such as David Lochbaum, Director of the Nuclear Safety Project for the Union of Concerned Scientists :”The scenario of a floating accident has the potential to occur when the liquid parts of the reactor core burn and reach the seawater through the bottom of the vessel, which would be a major disaster”.
