Hangzhou (People's Daily) - World’s first 3rd generation AP1000 nuclear power plant successfully synchronized to Sanmen’s power grid on June 30.

The AP1000 power plant in Sanmen, an eastern coastal county of Zhejiang Province, successfully achieved its initial synchronization with good performances for all parameters, and is a clear indication that the unit has moved from the construction stage to the commissioning and synchronization testing stage. With this success, a solid foundation for future performance tests and commercial operations has been laid.

Compared with the previous models of AP1000, the 3rd generation model has made great improvements in terms of safety. Adopting an advanced “passive” safety system, the reactor will be cooled down by natural physical phenomenon, such as gravity and convection, during emergency situations, and its power house is capable of resisting direct collisions from a large commercial airplane.

China agreed to construct four AP1000 power generation units in 2007, two units in Sanmen and another two in Haiyang in Shandong province. The first unit was scheduled to be completed four years ago, but had to delay due to safety concerns and design alternations.