MOSCOW, August 9Director General of Rosatom Alexei Likhachev discussed with the head of the Atomic Energy Agency of the People's Republic of China Zhang Kejiang the prospects for developing cooperation between Moscow and Beijing in the field of peaceful atom, the communications department of the Russian nuclear state corporation said.
The 27th meeting of the Russian-Chinese subcommittee on nuclear issues (within the framework of the commission for preparing regular meetings of the heads of government of Russia and China) took place in St. Petersburg. Likhachev and Zhang Kejian are co-chairs of the subcommittee.
«The parties discussed the implementation of current projects, as well as a promising agenda for cooperation in the field of the use of atomic energy for peaceful purposes. Following the meeting, a protocol was signed,» the report says.
Cooperation between Russia and China in the field of peaceful atom is actively developing. By the end of 2024, Moscow and Beijing will prepare a roadmap for a cooperation program for decades to come in the field of fast neutron reactors and closing the nuclear fuel cycle. The program itself was signed by Likhachev and Zhang Kejian in March this year as part of a state visit to the Russian Federation by Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The document is comprehensive. It covers several key areas at once: expanding cooperation in current projects, as well as implementing new projects related to fast neutron reactors; production of uranium-plutonium fuel; management of spent nuclear fuel and so on. In essence, we are talking about cooperation for decades to come and the formation of vectors for the development of nuclear energy at the global level.
With the participation of Russia in China built a demonstration nuclear reactor on fast neutrons CEFR. The countries are also working on a project for a power unit with a fast neutron reactor CFR-600 — this is China's flagship project in the field of «fast» nuclear energy. Rosatom's fuel company TVEL has fully fulfilled the 2022 plan for the supply of nuclear fuel to China for the CFR-600 reactor.
Now in China with the participation of Russia, new power units of the Tianwan NPP and the Xudapu NPP are being built. Tianwan NPP is the largest project of economic cooperation between Russia and China. Last week, the vessel of the VVER-1200 nuclear reactor was delivered from Russia to the site of the future power unit No. 7 of this nuclear power plant.