On April 17, at the 2026 Spring Nuclear Energy Sustainable Development Forum, Yang Changli, rotating chairman of the China Nuclear Energy Association, announced that China's nuclear energy sector achieved historic progress during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, laying a solid foundation for building a strong energy nation. During this period, China approved 46 new nuclear power units on the mainland, bringing the total number of operational and approved units under construction to 112, with a combined capacity of 125 million kilowatts, ranking first globally. Among these, 60 units are in operation with a capacity of 63.69 million kilowatts, placing China third worldwide in operational capacity. Over the past five years, nuclear power generation exceeded 2 trillion kilowatt-hours, equivalent to reducing carbon dioxide emissions by over 1.53 billion tons. Nuclear power operations have consistently adhered to the principle of "safety first, quality first," with no International Nuclear Event Scale Level 2 or higher incidents reported, and both the number of units with perfect WANO composite index scores and the average index ranking among the top globally.

Yang highlighted continuous advancements in nuclear energy technology innovation, with capabilities evolving from "catching up" to "running alongside" and leading in certain areas. The domestically developed third-generation nuclear technology, Hualong One, has entered batch construction, with eight units already commercially operational domestically and internationally, and 33 units approved and under construction. Major projects such as the Guohe One demonstration project, part of the large advanced pressurized water reactor program, and the world's first Generation IV safety-featured high-temperature gas-cooled reactor demonstration project have been completed and put into operation. The Linglong One small modular reactor demonstration project is progressing smoothly and is expected to be operational this year. The liquid-fuel thorium-based molten salt experimental reactor has achieved full-power operation. China's three-step nuclear energy strategy—thermal reactors, fast reactors, and fusion reactors—is advancing steadily, with significant progress in integrated closed-cycle fast reactor nuclear energy systems. Breakthroughs continue to be achieved in fusion devices such as the China Circulation-3 and the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak.

He emphasized that the nuclear power industry chain and supply chain have been continuously strengthened, with significantly enhanced capabilities in key areas. The localization rate of China's third-generation nuclear power units has exceeded 95%, with an annual manufacturing capacity of over 10 sets of major nuclear power equipment and the engineering capability to simultaneously construct 50 nuclear power units.