File photo of construction at the Hongyanhe pase two nucler station. Courtesy SNPTC. The four-unit Hongyanhe nuclear power station in northeast China generated a record of 30.8 TWh of electricity in 2019, local press reports said.

The reports, which quoted plant operator Hongyanhe Nuclear Power Company, said this was an 8.82% increase on the 2018 figure.

China’s 48 operational reactor generated about 295 TWh of electricity a year, representing a share of total electricity production of about 4.3%.

Hongyanhe has four 1,061-MW CPR-1000 units that began commercial operation between June 2013 and June 2016. The CPR-1000 is a Generation II unit developed in China based on Areva’s (now Orano) 900-MW three-loop design.

Press reports said almost $12 bn was invested in construction of the four units.

There are also two 1,000-MW ACPR units under construction for phase two of the Hongyanhe station. They are 85% complete and are expected to begin commercial operation in 2021 and 2022, reports said.