On March 22, 2022, the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration officially released the “14th Five-Year Plan for Modern Energy System” . The Plan proposes to enhance oil and gas supply capacity, to increase domestic oil and gas exploration and development, to adhere to the principle of equal emphasis on land and sea exploration, and carry out test production of natural gas hydrate in the South China Sea and other regions; actively push forward demonstration projects of advanced reactor types such as modular small reactors and offshore floating reactors; propel technical R&D .and demonstration applications foroffshore floating nuclear power platforms; encourage the use of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and other clean fuels to substitute gasoline for shipment.

The Plan emphasizes the active, safe and orderly development of nuclear power, and on the premise of ensuring safety, actively and orderly carrying outs the construction of coastal nuclear power projects, maintaining a stable construction rhythm, and rationally laying out new coastal nuclear power projects; making demonstration for comprehensive utilization of nuclear energy, and actively pushing forward demonstration projects of advanced reactor types such as high-temperature gas-cooled reactors, fast reactors, small modular reactors, and offshore floating reactors; promoting the comprehensive utilization of nuclear energy in clean heating supply, industrial steam supply, seawater desalination and other fields. By 2025, the installed capacity of nuclear power plants will reach about 70 million kilowatts.

In relation to advanced nuclear energy technology, the Plan outlines to carry out the optimization, upgrading, demonstration and application of key technologies for third-generation nuclear power; to push forward technical research and demonstration applications of small modular reactors, (very) high temperature gas-cooled reactors, low temperature heating reactors, fast reactors, molten salt reactors, and offshore floating nuclear power platforms; to support the early research and development of controlled nuclear fusion, and actively carry out international cooperation.

News source: China Ship News