China advances 1.25 GW nuclear reactor construction with first concrete pour

China has completed the first concrete pour for the conventional island basemat of unit 2 at the Bailong nuclear power plant in Guangxi, marking fresh progress on the country’s planned 8.62-GW nuclear complex. State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC) announced the milestone after work concluded on August 9. The operation began on the evening of August 7 and continued for 38 hours and 46 minutes, during which crews poured 1,732 cubic meters (2,264 cubic yards) of concrete. The foundation will support future construction of the turbine base and basement sidewalls for the 1.25-GW reactor. Nine-zone foundation takes shape The conventional island, also known as the turbine island, houses equipment that converts steam produced by the reactor into electricity. Its basement slab uses an integral raft foundation divided into nine separate construction zones. Crews employed a “skip-pour” construction technique, under which concrete sections are poured in a planned sequence rather than consecutively. This approach can help manage thermal stresses and reduce the possibility of cracking as large volumes of concrete cure. The latest operation covered Zone 1 of the foundation. According to SPIC, teams monitored construction standards and strengthened oversight throughout the nearly 39-hour continuous pour. “During the pouring operations, the project team closely monitored process standards, continuously strengthened supervision and control throughout the entire process, and built a solid safety and quality defense line to ensure the safe and high-quality implementation of the conventional island first concrete pouring,” SPIC said. China advances two CAP1000 reactors China’s State Council approved the first phase of the Bailong project in August 2024 as part of a wider package covering 11 new nuclear reactors. SPIC plans to construct two CAP1000 pressurized water reactors, China’s version of Westinghouse’s AP1000 design. Each unit will have a generating capacity of 1.25 GW, giving the first phase a combined capacity of 2.5 GW. The two reactors are expected to require approximately CNY40 billion ($5.6 billion) in investment and take 56 months to construct. Work on unit 1 is already underway. Excavation for its nuclear island foundation began in December 2024, while the first concrete was poured on December 22, 2025. That operation used 6,662 cubic meters (8,716 cubic yards) of concrete and lasted slightly more than 64 hours. “The completion of the conventional island first concrete pouring of unit 2 is a crucial engineering milestone in the construction of the Bailong Nuclear Power Project,” SPIC said. “It lays a solid foundation for the subsequent construction of the turbine foundation and basement sidewalls, and provides strong support for the overall efficient progress of the project,” they added. Six reactors planned near Vietnam Located on the Jiangshan Peninsula in Fangchenggang City, the Bailong plant is planned to eventually feature six reactors with 8.62 GW of installed capacity. Its total projected investment is approximately CNY120 billion. Four larger CAP1400 reactors are proposed for later phases. The site lies around 24 kilometers (15 miles) from the Vietnamese border and 30 kilometers (19 miles) southwest of China General Nuclear’s Fangchenggang plant. Once operational, Bailong’s first two units are expected to generate about 20 billion kilowatt-hours annually. SPIC estimates this output could reduce standard coal consumption by 6.6 million tons and avoid approximately 17.6 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions every year.Get the latest in engineering, tech, space & science - delivered daily to your inbox.Atharva is a full-time content writer with a post-graduate degree in media & amp; entertainment and a graduate degree in electronics & telecommunications. He has written in the sports and technology domains respectively. In his leisure time, Atharva loves learning about digital marketing and watching soccer matches. His main goal behind joining Interesting Engineering is to learn more about how the recent technological advancements are helping human beings on both societal and individual levels in their daily lives.