Guangdong Nuclear agrees to build Anhui plant

BEIJING, CHINA - China Guangdong Nuclear Power and its partners, including Shanghai-listed Shenergy, agreed to build a nuclear power plant in the central province of Anhui to cater to rising energy demand.

Guangdong Nuclear, Shenergy, Shanghai Electric Power and Anhui Province Energy Group signed an agreement to jointly invest in the first phase of the nuclear plant, Guangdong Nuclear said in a statement on its Web site.

China wants to increase the use of alternatives like nuclear energy to reduce pollution and dependence on oil and coal. The country needs to add two reactors a year to meet a target of generating 4 percent of its electricity from nuclear plants by 2020 compared with about 2.3 percent now.

The Anhui nuclear plant may cost 46 billion yuan, or $5.84 billion, the state-run Xinhua agency reported in November, citing the local government in the city of Wuhu.