China turns back to nuclear power as concerns over energy security rise
- Authorities have approved two plants – the first in over a year – with a total cost of US$10bn
- Country is trying to boost use of cleaner energy sources but struggles to break its reliance on fossil fuels
The country is still heavily dependent on coal and other fossil fuels, but in May the State Council, China’s cabinet, stressed the need to develop different sources of energy in its annual work report.
“We will push forward with the upgrading of coal-fired power plants, actively yet prudently develop hydropower, safely develop advanced nuclear power facilities, and maintain optimal development of wind and photovoltaic power,” the report said.
Michal Meidan, director of the China Energy Programme at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, wrote in a commentary published on the institute’s website in June that energy security was clearly becoming a greater concern for China’s policymakers.
China currently relies on oil, gas and coal to produce enough power to meet its needs and imports of all three rose last year. It surpassed the US to become the world’s largest oil importer in 2017 and last year imports rose by 9.5 per cent.