Nuclear power project kicks off in S. China province

CHANGJIANG, Hainan, April 25 (Xinhua) -- Construction of a large nuclear power plant started Sunday in south China's Hainan Province.

The project, with an estimated investment of 19 billion yuan (2.78 billion U.S. dollars), lies in the northwestern Changjiang County of Hainan.

It will consist of two CNP600 pressurized water reactors, each with a capacity of 650,000 kilowatts. The first reactor will be completed and connected to the grid by the end of 2014, according to the provincial government.

China's nuclear power giants, China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) and China Huaneng Group (CHG), will jointly finance and develop the project.

Hainan need more energy to sustain and boost its rapid development as an international tourist destination. The safe and clean nuclear power was chosen to avoid affecting the island's ecology, said provincial governor Luo Baoming.

The province has little coal resource, while 66 percent of its hydropower resource has been utilized, leaving little potential for future development, Luo added.