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China said weighing bids on nuke plants
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-06-06 18:27
BEIJING - China is still weighing bids by competing U.S., French and Russian
suppliers of nuclear power technology before making a closely watched
multibillion-dollar decision on equipping two new power plants, a senior
official said Monday.
The contracts, reportedly worth up to $8 billion,
are expected to be the biggest in years in the world's nuclear power industry,
which is looking to China to drive equipment sales as it tries to meet surging
energy needs.
Suppliers' willingness to transfer technology to China is among key issues
still being examined, said Kang Rixin, general manager of the China National
Nuclear Corp.
Chinese news reports have said contracts for the two nuclear plants might be
awarded in October. But asked about timing at a news conference, Kang would say
only, "We will make a decision in due time."
The two planned facilities are at Sanmen in the eastern province of Zhejiang,
just south of Shanghai, and Yangjiang in Guangdong province, which borders Hong
Kong.
Competitors to equip the facilities are the French nuclear group Areva;
Westinghouse Electric Co., the U.S. unit of British Nuclear Fuels PLC; and
Russia's AtomStroyExport.
China is in the midst of a boom in power plant construction as it tries to
cope with rapidly increasing energy demands that have caused blackouts in areas
throughout the country.
Kang rejected speculation that France or Russia might have an edge in the
bidding because Beijing's relations with Washington are cooler.
"We don't consider politics," Kang said. "We choose the best technology for
China's power development."
China expects the share of its power supplied by nuclear generation to grow
to 4 percent by 2020 from 2.3 percent today, Kang said.
"But that 4 percent isn't our final goal," he said.
The country has a total of nine nuclear generating units operating, with two
more under construction.
The Qinshan plant in Zhejiang, with five generating units, was built with
Chinese technology. But the government says future plants will rely more on
foreign designs.
China's government promotes nuclear power as a cleaner alternative to the
abundant but dirty coal that fuels most of its power plants and has left cities
smothered in smog.
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