Frequent good news for the "national name card" Hualong No. 1 has recently spread. After the world's third Hualong No. 1 unit achieved its first full power operation, at 23:49 Beijing time on February 21, 2022,the Hualong No. 1 overseas demonstration project, the fourth unit in the world - Pakistan Karachi Nuclear Power Plant Unit 3 reactor for the first time reaching the critical state marks that the unit has officially entered the stage of power operation, laying the foundation for subsequent grid-connected power generation and commercial operation. This is a solid action taken by Chinese and Pakistani nuclear scientists and workers to continue to deepen the comprehensive strategic partnership in the new era between China and Pakistan, and to promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind and the “Belt and Road” initiative.

The criticality of one unit in a nuclear power plant is similar to the ignition process of a conventional thermal power plant boiler, and it is also like a heart pacing. After criticality, as the "heart" of the reactor - the core will start to "beat" continuously, and the reactor is in a state of nuclear equilibrium operation.

Hualong No. 1 is the third-generation pressurized water reactor innovation achievement with completely independent intellectual property rights developed and designed by China National Nuclear Corporation on the basis of more than 30 years of nuclear power research, design, construction, operation and management experience. It meets the highest international safety standards and is fully capable of batch construction. It is one of the third-generation nuclear power plants with the highest acceptance in the current nuclear power market. At present, the world's first Hualong-1 of Fuqing Nuclear Power Unit 5 and the first overseas unit of Pakistan's Karachi Unit 2 have been put into commercial operation since 2021. On February 1, 2022, the EPC contract for the Hualong No. 1 nuclear power project in Argentina was signed.

After the Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Authority completed a strict review of the critical conditions of Karachi Unit 3, the critical operating control point of the reactor was released. With the close cooperation of the operators of China and Pakistan, the critical operation of the reactor started, and the first critical operation of the reactor was successfully completed. The process was stable and orderly, and all operating parameters were in the range of normal operation.

The first overseas reactor of Hualong No. 1, Karachi No. 2, Pakistan, led by China Zhongyuan Engineering Corp for its EPC responsibility, with contractors that are the China Nuclear Power Engineering Co., Ltd., the Nuclear Power Research and Design Institute, the China Nuclear Industry Huaxing Construction Co.,Ltd., the China Nuclear Industry Fifth Construction Co.,Ltd.,the  China Nuclear Engineering Consulting Co., Ltd., has been officially put into commercial operation. It has set the shortest construction period for overseas construction of third-generation nuclear power plants in the world, and won the best practice case of energy international cooperation. Hualong No. 1 unit generates about 9 billion kWh of electricity annually, meeting the annual electricity demand of more than 4 million local households, equivalent to reducing 3.12 million tons of standard coal and 8.16 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions every year, equivalent to planting more than 70 million trees. It is of great significance to optimize Pakistan's energy structure, promote the realization of the global "dual carbon" goal and jointly address the global climate crisis.