China says it has completed development of CAP 1400 third-generation nuclear technology
- Design could help cut carbon emissions and help meet pledge to become carbon neutral by 2060
- Announcement also means that the reactors, based on a US design, can now be sold abroad
The announcement that work on the CAP 1400 reactors had finished came days after Chinese President Xi Jinping promised to make the country carbon neutral by 2060.
Analysts said it meant it could now sell the technology, based on a US design, to other countries without getting approval from the American makers of the original. It also marks a shift towards domestically produced technology that has been accelerated by the ongoing tensions with the United States.
CAP 1400 is the second third-generation nuclear technology China has developed, joining the Hualong One reactors based on a French design.
The first two reactors using the CAP 1400 technology are being built at the Shidao Bay Nuclear Power Plant in the eastern province of Shandong, a project that was approved last year.