China's nuclear power units maintain good safety performance

China's nuclear power units have maintained strong safety performance for years, according to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment on Wednesday.

The total number of nuclear power units on the Chinese mainland has reached 102, including 58 units with operating licenses. The total installed capacity stands at 113 million kilowatts, ranking first globally in terms of scale, said Hou Yingdong, an official with the ministry, at a press conference.

Nuclear power units in the Chinese mainland have operated safely for more than 600 reactor years, Hou added. A reactor year refers to one reactor operating for a full year.

According to the latest index by the World Association of Nuclear Operators on global nuclear power performance, China's nuclear power operation safety performance has continued to rank among the best in the world.

Hou noted that the sites of nuclear power plants in China are all far from earthquake-prone areas, and the impacts of natural disasters such as heavy rain, floods and tsunamis have been fully considered. "The safety of the nuclear power plants is guaranteed in the face of extreme natural disasters," he said.

China has also established the world's largest radiation environment quality monitoring network, the ministry's official Li Zhiguo said at the press conference, adding that the radiation environment level around nuclear facilities in China has remained good over years.