goingcritical:xuwei-1China · Power reactor
Xuwei-1
Status: Under construction Reactor status full glossary → Announced Publicly announced — a site and design are proposed, but construction has not begun. Site preparation Early site and civil works are under way; the first safety-related ("nuclear") concrete has not yet been poured. Under construction Formal construction has begun, marked by the first nuclear concrete. Fuel loaded Nuclear fuel has been loaded into the core. The reactor is fuelled but has not yet gone critical. Critical Has reached first criticality — a self-sustaining chain reaction, usually at low power — but is not yet connected to the grid. Grid connected Synchronised to the electrical grid and exporting power for the first time, but still in commissioning and power-ascension testing — not yet in commercial service. In commercial operation — the operator has formally declared the unit in regular commercial service. Shut down Permanently shut down and no longer generating; may be defuelled, undergoing decommissioning, or preserved in place. Canceled Abandoned before completion.
Site: Lianyungang, Jiangsu
First unit of the world's first large-scale nuclear-petrochemical cogeneration project, coupling HPR1000 PWRs with a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor
First concrete poured 2026-01-16; no stated criticality target found. PRIS net capacity (729 MWe) is lower than the HPR1000's usual ~1200 MWe because the unit is configured for industrial steam cogeneration
Details
| Design | HPR1000 |
| Electrical output | 729 MWe |
Milestone history
- Announced —
- Construction start January 16, 2026
- Fuel load —
- First criticality —
- Grid connection —
- Commercial operation —