China has achieved considerable progress in the development of its nuclear industry over the past decade or so, said Prof. Ouyang Yu, a CAS member and specialist in nuclear electricity, in an interview with Guangming Daily on Dec. 31, 2002. The electricity generation of the Qinshan Nuclear Power Station in east China's Zhejiang Province on Dec. 15, 1991, the first commercial nuclear power plant designed, built and managed by Chinese people, signified the windup of the history that there was no nuclear power plant in mainland China, said Ouyang, chief designer of the Qinshan station. The five years from 1996 to 2000 witnessed the project initiation of eight nuclear power units. After their completion, the total installed capacity of nuclear power plants in China will be expected to reach 9 million kilowatts, accounting for about 3% of total electricity production capacity in this country.
