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Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday hailed nuclear energy cooperation between the two countries when attending a groundbreaking ceremony of the bilateral nuclear energy cooperation project via video link.
The ceremony was held to mark the first day of construction of power units No. 7 and 8 of the Tianwan Nuclear Power Plant, and No. 3 and 4 of the Xudapu Nuclear Power Plant.
Xi, in his speech, reiterated China's close attention to energy cooperation with Russia as it is a traditional cooperative area between the two countries.
Xi hailed the beginning of construction of the two nuclear power plants, and noted that the energy projects set an example for bilateral cooperation in other sectors.
Stressing that the bilateral cooperation on nuclear energy is meaningful for the high-level development of the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era, Xi said he hopes the two sides will follow the sound momentum and conduct more effective cooperation in other sectors.
Witnessed by both Xi and Putin, China and Russia signed a strategic package of agreements on nuclear energy in June 2018 to jointly construct four nuclear power units, the biggest of such between the two countries so far, with a total contract value of over 20 billion yuan (about $3 billion).
All the four units will adopt the third-generation VVER-1200 reactors developed by Russia. Compared to its precedent VVER-1000 reactor, the latest VVER-1200 reactor features advantages in many aspects, according to Russia's Rosatom State Nuclear Energy Corporation.
Once completed, the four units are expected to effectively reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
