Chapter Five

Other Energy Sources

China has the world’s fastest growing electric power industry, although the Ministry of Electric Power estimates that about 15 to 20 percent of the country’s electrical demand is not being satisfied, with up to 100 million people still without access to electricity. China’s 1995 electric generating capacity was estimated at about 190 gigawatts, about 75 percent of it produced from coal. Beijing has established a plan to increase the availability of electrical power, focusing on establishing major channels in the southern, middle, and northern parts of the country.¹³²

Hydroelectric Power

China has the world’s most abundant hydroelectric generating capacity, and it is a particularly important source of electric power in the central and western regions. But the location of this potential relative to markets and the environmental concerns associated with large projects could limit hydropower’s contribution to China’s electric generation needs. Nonetheless, the government seems intent on exploiting hydropower reserves “to obtain cheap, renewable, and clean energy.”¹³³
The Three Gorges Dam project on the Yangtze River, launched in 1993, involves construction of the world’s largest hydropower project, with its 26,750-megawatt (MW) generating units slated to provide a total of 18.2 million kilowatt (kW) generating capacity by 2009, with an annual generation of 84.7 billion kW.¹³⁴ In October 2002, the Three Gorges Hydropower Station, announced as “the world’s largest,” was “formally founded” in Hubei Province, with an announced operating date of October 2003.¹³⁵ This project may cost as much as $25 billion, but even that figure may lack meaning, given the corruption, social cost of displacing over one million people and over 1,000 archeological sites, and unknown environmental aftereffects.¹³⁶ Additionally, this mammoth project’s construction better represents China’s inefficiency at distributing already available energy than it does an absolute need for new sources.

Nuclear Power

Beijing began construction of its first nuclear power generating plant in 1983, but 20 years later, nuclear power still represents a relatively minor share of China’s electric generating capacity, with 6 plants currently in operation. Two are equipped with Canadian-built reactors (288 and 650 MW), at Qinshan at Hangzhou Bay in Zhejiang Province.¹³⁷
A huge (1,812-MW) plant was also built at Daya Bay in Guangdong Province. Under construction are a second 650-MW unit at the Qinshan plant and two 1,000-MW units at a new plant, Lingao, near Hong Kong. The first two Qinshan reactors came on line in 1996 and 2002; the third is expected to begin operating in 2003.¹³⁸ Another large complex under construction is the four-generator, billion-kW nuclear power station at Shenzhen. The first of these began operation in late 2001.¹³⁹
The Tenth 5-Year Plan (2001–2005) includes the construction of “some number” of nuclear power plants, with Shandong, Zhejiang, and Guangdong provincial officials taking the lead in planning new plants.¹⁴⁰ The government has not approved construction of a new nuclear power plant for 5 years, however, indicating the marginal regard in Beijing for this energy source.¹⁴¹
A senior nuclear power official has announced plans for 9 total units, which will produce 8.7 gigawatts (GW) by 2005. By 2015, output from nuclear plants is projected to increase ninefold over 1996 levels, accounting for about 4.5 percent of China’s electric power generation.¹⁴² Not addressed by this official, but reported in the press, is the nuclear power industry’s difficulty in earning enough revenue to repay construction loans; about 90 percent of the money for the Qinshan project was borrowed from Canada, the United States, and Japan.¹⁴³
A new plant near Beijing reportedly incorporates state-of-the-art “high-temperature air-cooled” technology. Its status as “one of the 15 key projects of the ‘863’ state high technology research development program” indicates that it may be linked to the military sector.¹⁴⁴
Chinese plans for increasing nuclear power generating capacity usually mention Russian assistance, but the actual degree of collaboration is uncertain. Although Moscow is providing various equipment for the construction of the Tianwan nuclear power plant, including manufacture and installation of the first complete reactor, actual plant construction has not matched the rhetoric.¹⁴⁵ Overall, this is a modest plan, and Beijing is planning a limited role for nuclear power in satisfying China’s energy needs, probably no more than 4 to 5 percent by 2020.¹⁴⁶ One reason for this is the lack of indigenous capability in nuclear power plant construction.¹⁴⁷

Renewable Energy Sources

China’s renewable energy resources include biomass (garbage), ethanol, geothermal, solar, and wind. Further development of these resources could reduce China’s growing dependence on imported oil and its need for additional coal-fired power plants and provide sources of energy for populations in remote areas not currently served by existing energy distribution systems. None of these sources, however, should be expected to make more than a slight dent in China’s energy needs.
Investment in development of wind energy resources is expanding, and the government has announced tax breaks for wind power generation producers. As of 1995, the country had 44 MW of wind power generating capacity, of which 14 MW were installed in 1995 alone. Xinjiang Province, in northwestern China, has announced plans to add 66 wind power generators to an existing plant to create what would be the largest wind power base in Asia. Fujian Province has announced plans to build wind generation power plants with a capacity of 200,000 kW by 2005.¹⁴⁸ Guangdong Province is also pursuing development of wind power plants.¹⁴⁹ The nation’s total wind generating capacity was approximately 375 MW in 2000, and could exceed 1 GW by 2010.¹⁵⁰
Beijing is also investing in development of its geothermal energy resources, with nearly 29 MW of generating capacity developed as of 1995 (up about 50 percent from 1990). As with wind energy, the market potential and resource base are significantly greater: an estimated 1,800 MW of geothermal resources, with market potential of 600 MW.
China’s solar energy resources are assessed at 4 MW per square meter, with market potential for solar energy estimated at 135 peak MW. Biomass resources are assessed at 260 million tons of oil equivalent.¹⁵¹ International assistance for developing China’s renewable energy resources includes support from the World Bank; since 1998, the bank’s Global Environmental Fund has been funding appraisal projects for photovoltaics (conversion of light energy into electricity), wind, and biomass (conversion of refuse into electricity), as well as hydroelectricity. Finally, a program promoting ethanol-based fuel has been launched, both to benefit the environment and to improve the grain market for farmers.¹⁵² A three-test site program for processing landfill gas is also being funded by the national government.¹⁵³

Endnotes

¹³²Han Rongliang, “China to Build Three Channels for West-East Electricity Transmission,” Renmin Ribao Radio, March 20, 2002, in FBIS-CPP20020320000090. [BACK]

¹³³“More Schemes Unveiled to Tap Yangtze Hydropower Resources,” China Daily, February 12, 2003, in FBIS-CPP20030213000014. [BACK]

¹³⁴“China to Make Investment for Three Gorges Power Transmission,” Xinhua, October 31, 2002, in Alexander’s7, no. 23 (November 27, 2002). [BACK]

¹³⁵“World’s Largest Hydropower Station Launched in China,” Renmin Ribao, October 25, 2002, in FBIS-CPP20021025000062. [BACK]

¹³⁶Manning, 97–98. [BACK]

¹³⁷“China-Built Nuclear Generator Unit Operational,” Xinhua, August 16, 2002, in FBIS-CPP20020816000085; “China’s 1st Heavy Water Generator Starts Working,” China Daily, November 20, 2002. [BACK]

¹³⁸“Winshan Nuclear Power Plant Begins 2d Phase Operations,” Xinhua, February 6, 2002, in FBIS-CPP20010106000095 and “China-Made Nuclear Plant Runs for Commercial Use,” Xinhua, April 19, 2002, in FBIS-CPP20020419000041; “Three Nuke Power Plants Ready for Use this Year,” People’s Daily, January 31, 2002, accessed at <www.english.peopledaily.com.cn/200201/>. [BACK]

¹³⁹Li Nanling, “Lingao Nuclear Power Station Loads Fuel, Begins Trial Run,” Xinhua (Hong Kong), December 9, 2002, in FBIS-CPP20011209000050. [BACK]

¹⁴⁰Xie Ye, “China to Build New Nuclear Power Plants in Coastal Provinces,” China Daily, March 13, 2001, in FBIS-CPP20010313000061, and “More Nuke Power on the Way,” China Daily, December 17, 2001, in FBIS-CPP20011217000025. [BACK]

¹⁴¹Xie Ye, “New Nuke Power Plant Planned,” China Daily, January 11, 2003, in FBIS-CPP20030111000023, reporting that Zhejiang Province had applied to Beijing to build a “U.S. $2 billion nuclear power plant” in 2004. [BACK]

¹⁴²“China’s Nuclear Power Capacity to Keep Rising,” Xinhua, October 23, 2002, in FBIS-CPP20021023000137. “Construction of Nuclear Power Plant Completed in Shenzhen,” Xinhua, January 8, 2003, in FBIS-CPP20030108000065, reports completion of Guangdong Province’s second 2-million-kW nuclear power plant. [BACK]

¹⁴³“China’s 1st Heavy Water Generator Starts Working,” China Daily, November 20, 2002, also notes that the power company is negotiating with the government for tax breaks based on the fact “given nuclear power is cleaner energy compared with thermal power.” “State of the Art Reactor Faces an Uncertain Future,” AFP, in the South China Morning Post, November 21, 2002, reported (probably erroneously) that the third plant at Qinshan began producing power in November and expanded on the company’s appeal to the government and difficulty in repaying its construction loans. [BACK]

¹⁴⁴Liu Jiang and Han Song, “China’s New-Generation Nuclear Reactor Successfully Connects to Power Grid in Full Capacity for Generating Electricity in Beijing,” Xinhua, March 1, 2003, in FBIS-CPP20030301000081, is mistitled, since the plant is intended initially for experimentation and personnel training. [BACK]

¹⁴⁵“Russia to Continue Building Nuclear Power Plants Abroad,” ITAR–TASS, March 27, 2002, in FBIS-CEP20020327000315. Also see, for instance, “Russians to Start Supplying Equipment for Chinese Nuclear Power Plant,” Russian Information Agency (Moscow), in FBIS-CEP20010918000085; Andrei Kirilov, “Specialists Install Nuclear Reactor in China,” ITAR–TASS, April 20, 2002, in FBIS-CEP20020420000045; finally, Russia announced it would bid on additional nuclear power plant construction in China in “Russia’s Atomic Energy Minister Visits China,” ITAR–TASS, July 8, 2002, in FBIS-CEP20020708000036. [BACK]

¹⁴⁶Manning, 98–100. [BACK]

¹⁴⁷“Analysts Say China Making ‘Immense’ Progress Producing Nuclear Power Equipment,” Xinhua,March 30, 2002, in FBIS-CPP20020330000089, reports successful manufacture of “reactor components” for the second phase of the Qinshan power plant, but the very celebratory tenor of this report bespeaks the nascent nature of this industrial capability in China—especially in view of the more authoritative reports that this equipment was obtained from Canada. [BACK]

¹⁴⁸“Fujian Province to Build Wind-Generated Power Plants,” Xinhua, in Alexander’s 8, no. 4 (February 20, 2003). [BACK]

¹⁴⁹“CLP to Build China’s Largest Wind Power Plant in Guangdong,” SinoCast, January 15, 2003, in Alexander’s 8, no. 2 (February 6, 2003). [BACK]

¹⁵⁰“China to Halve Value-Added Levy on Wind Power Generation,” Asia Pulse, in Alexander’s 7, no. 11 (May 29, 2002). [BACK]

¹⁵¹“China Has Bright Prospects for Biogas Power Plants,” Asia Pulse, in Alexander’s 6, no. 24 (December 19, 2001), reported that city garbage was being burned as an energy source in Hangzhou and Guangzhou, as did “Northeast China’s Harbin Builds Waste-Burning Power Plant,” Xinhua, April 7, 2002, in FBIS-CPP20020407000064, with Nanjing, Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, and Beihai planning to follow suit. [BACK]

¹⁵²“China Promoting Ethanol-Based Fuel on Pilot Basis in Five Cities,” Xinhua, June 17, 2002, in FBIS-CPP20020617000134. [BACK]

¹⁵³Qin Chuan, “Landfill Gas Plan Powers Future Free of Pollution,” China Daily, October 24, 2002, in FBIS-CPP200210240000042, describes a seemingly far-fetched fuel processing scheme but represents Beijing’s determination to find alternative energy sources. [BACK]