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Stephen Chen

Targeting its overwhelming coal power capacity – enough to run the entire United States – China is investigating plans to convert retiring coal-fired plants into nuclear power stations.
Driven by decarbonisation goals and land scarcity, this “Coal to Nuclear” (C2N) strategy would look to use retiring plants’ grid and water access for compact, meltdown-proof reactors, potentially offering a faster path to clean energy than building nuclear sites from scratch.
And China could be the only country capable of doing this because its high-temperature gas-cooled reactor and molten salt thorium reactor, which can generate much hotter steam than ordinary reactors to power the coal-fired gas turbines with high efficiency, are already up and running.
These fourth-generation reactors could also have a greater chance of meeting site safety requirements and securing public acceptance, according to the researchers involved in the project.
China is home to over 1.19 terawatts of coal-fired power capacity, with roughly 100 gigawatts (GW) of coal capacity expected to reach retirement by 2030.
The C2N initiative, proposed by China Energy Engineering Group Co (CEEC), the nation’s top state-owned energy infrastructure builder, offers a direct path to decarbonisation while preserving valuable infrastructure, especially in the coastal areas.
It is drawing growing interest from policymakers, engineers and environmental analysts amid the country’s dual goals of securing clean energy and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060.

Globally, coal-fired plants are responsible for 30 per cent of energy-related carbon dioxide emissions. In China, coal still generates over half of the country’s electricity, making it the single largest source of greenhouse gases.
Nuclear power produces near-zero emissions during operation, with life cycle emissions comparable with wind energy, according to industrial estimates.
China has the world’s largest number of nuclear reactors in use, under construction and planned. Its nuclear industry supply chain has reached a size and completeness unmatched by any other country.
“Given China’s vast coal-fired power capacity and the long construction timeline for nuclear plants, the C2N transition could span several decades,” wrote the project team led by senior engineer Li Xiaoyu with CEEC’s China Power Engineering Consulting Group in a peer-reviewed paper published in the Chinese language journal Southern Energy Construction in July.
“During this period, if breakthroughs occur in nuclear fusion technology, the future transformation of coal plants might shift from converting them into fission reactors to repurposing them for fusion power plants,” added Li and his colleagues.
The idea of C2N is not new. In the United States, the 2022 Chips and Science Act included provisions to support the conversion of retiring coal plants into nuclear sites. The US Department of Energy has identified over 400 potential coal-to-nuclear candidate sites.
TerraPower, a nuclear energy company backed by Bill Gates, is already advancing plans to build a sodium-cooled fast reactor at a retired coal plant in Wyoming.

But the US took decades to build one new reactor, while China is opening seven to eight reactors each year.
With the world’s largest number of coal plants and the fastest-growing nuclear pipeline, the coal-to-nuclear transition is not just feasible for China but strategically logical – especially along the densely populated eastern coast, where electricity demand is high and land is scarce, according to the study.
One major challenge could be compatibility. Traditionally, a commercial nuclear power plant requires stringent safety zoning, including large exclusion zones and access to vast water supplies. Most inland coal plants do not meet these conditions.
That is where advanced reactor designs come in. Published in the same issue, separate research led by senior engineer Song Xiaoyi with East China Electric Power Design Institute suggests that high-temperature gas-cooled reactors (HTGRs) may be ideal for coal plant retrofits.
HTGRs require smaller safety zones, have lower water needs, and their reactor parameters align more closely with existing coal plant steam systems, simplifying integration.
A 600-megawatt HTGR can fit on a coal plant site with minimal land expansion, and its inherent safety features – such as the ability to withstand meltdowns without active cooling – reduce the need for off-site emergency planning, according to Song and her colleagues.
China already operates a demonstration HTGR at the Shidao Bay site, marking a major milestone in fourth-generation nuclear technology.
The molten salt reactor that uses commonly found thorium as fuel could also be a candidate because it requires no water for cooling, making it an optimal choice for inland sites, according to the study.


An experimental thorium reactor is already up and running in the Gobi Desert, while a larger version with electricity generation capacity is under construction.
While the technical case is gaining strength, major hurdles remain. Nuclear power remains capital intensive, with construction costs higher than coal-fired plants. Even with savings from reusing infrastructure, financing such projects requires long-term policy commitment, according to the researchers.
Moreover, public opinion could also be a major issue.
“Social factors have become one of the key influences on infrastructure development in China. Public acceptance of nuclear energy and concerns about its safety directly affect decision-making by governments and enterprises,” wrote Li’s team.
“Establishing transparent communication mechanisms and enhancing public engagement and education to improve societal acceptance of nuclear power would be crucial to C2N,” they added.
There are also policy questions. China’s nuclear sector has long been dominated by a handful of state-owned enterprises, in part due to security concerns.
To scale up the transition, regulators may need to open the market to more players, including traditional power companies that own coal assets, the studies suggest.


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China mulls converting coal-fired power plants to nuclear facilities

Guohua Power Station, a coal-fired power plant, operates in Dingzhou, Baoding, in the northern China’s Hebei province. Engineers are looking into turning retired power plants into nuclear facilities to help reach its decarbonisation goals. Photo: AP 

Guohua Power Station, a coal-fired power plant, operates as people move down a street. Photo: AP

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CHSN01 (China high-strength low-temperature steel No 1) solves a critical bottleneck for fusion energy and puts China at a leading position in materials science. Photo: Handout

China’s next-generation nuclear plans take step forward with fast gigawatt reactor design

China’s first commercial fourth-generation gigawatt-level fast neutron reactor is awaiting approval and expected to become operational after 2030. Photo: Shutterstock  

China to nearly double nuclear power capacity by 2040 in rapid build-up

Workers install the core module of a new nuclear reactor in southern China’s Hainan province. China is rapidly expanding its nuclear power generation capacity. Photo: Xinhua

China is rapidly expanding its nuclear power capacity, with the country projected to leapfrog the United States as the world’s largest nuclear power generator by 2030. Photo: Xinhua

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A drone photo shows a construction site of the Tianwan Nuclear Power Station Unit 8 in Lianyungang, east China’s Jiangsu Province, June 19, 2024. Photo: Xinhua

The Shidaowan nuclear power plant in China’s eastern Shandong province, world’s first fourth-generation nuclear power plant. Photo: Weibo CPNN

News

China

Retiring plants could be given a new lease of life and help China reach its decarbonisation goals under a bold proposal.


China mulls converting coal-fired power plants to nuclear facilities

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Retiring plants could be given a new lease of life and help China reach its decarbonisation goals under a bold proposal.

Retiring plants could be given a new lease of life and help China reach its decarbonisation goals under a bold proposal.