Hui Zhang

Satellite images, along with commercial bidding and purchase documents and other accounts suggest that in 2023 China started construction of a third demonstration reprocessing plant at the same site as its first two 200 MT/year demonstration reprocessing plants, the CNNC Gansu Nuclear Technology Industrial Park in Jinta, Gansu province.

Figure 1. The demonstration reprocessing and MOX facilities at Jinta, Gansu. Satellite image from November 11, 2024 (Coordinates: 40.333750, 98.494167). Credit: Google Earth, Airbus.

China started the construction of its first 200 tons/year demonstration reprocessing plant (Project I) for spent light-water reactor fuel in 2015. As satellite images show, all the major construction including the main processing builds had been completed by November 2024 (see Figure 2). Moreover, since about 2020 the company has started equipment purchase and installment for the reprocessing lines. Project I is expected to be operational in 2025.

Figure 2. Zoom of the Project I demonstration reprocessing facility shown in Figure 1. The main processing buildings have been completed.

Satellite images and commercial bidding and purchase documents also show that in 2020 China started the construction of its second 200 tons/year demonstration reprocessing plant (Project II) for spent light-water reactor fuel. It should be noted that the 2021 post incorrectly placed Project II to the west of Project I (the actual location is shown in Figure 1). However, this larger place could be planned and reserved for another reprocessing project.

Although Project II construction began later than Project I, satellite images from November 2024 (Figure 3) show that major construction, including the main processing buildings, was completed at the same time as Project I. It seems CNNC has sped up those reprocessing projects. This suggests that Project II could be commissioned earlier than the previous expectation of 2030.

Figure 3. Zoom of the Project II demonstration reprocessing facility shown in Figure 1. The main processing buildings have been completed.

New commercial bidding and purchase documents further show China started the construction of a third demonstration reprocessing plant, often referred to as "spent fuel demonstration reprocessing plant Project III (R3)," in 2023. ("R3" would represent Project III reprocessing plant, similar to the "R1" designation for the Project I plant used in some Chinese documents.)

As the case of Project II, there have been no official statements or news coverage so far concerning this new facility. There have been a number of announcements, however, including bid requests for relevant equipment for "spent fuel demonstration reprocessing plant project III (R3)." Some examples are as follows:

• Hangzhou Jingye Zhineng (Boomy Intelligent), a company engaged in nuclear industry intelligent equipment, on November 23, 2023 responded to a bidder request regarding the information on the annual reprocessing capacity of the demonstration spent fuel reprocessing plant Project III (R3).
• A bid for the heat exchange station equipment for Project III with a bidding period of 11 January 2023 to 17 January 2023, and the equipment be delivered by 30 May 2024.
• A bid for the liquid waste storage tank project for Project III, with the completion date of 23 February 2024.

Analysis of satellite images suggests that Project III is likely located at the new extended area as shown in Figure 1 (zoom in Figure 4). Signs of construction activities at the new extended area appeared in early 2023, but the main processing buildings sites had not shown activity until May 2023. However, images in May 2024 showed the main processing building was under construction. The November 2024 image shows the intensified construction activities in the extended area including the possible reprocessing plant project III and other unidentified facilities. The start of work on the third reprocessing plant (Project III) around 2023 suggests that it could be commissioned before 2033.

Figure 4. Zoom of the new extended area shown in Figure 1. Besides the Project III reprocessing facility, there are several constructions with unidentified purposes.

Figure 5. Zoom of the Project III demonstration reprocessing facility shown in Figure 1. There are intensified construction activities at the site by November 2024.

So far, there are no available sources specifying the purpose and capacity of Project III. Some Chinese accounts mentioned that following Project I China would build Project II and Project III to reduce the burden of spent fuel storage at (PWR) reactors sites. Also, some nuclear experts suggested CNNC can build more demonstration reprocessing plants using a modular approach. Thus, as Project I and II, Project III is likely with a capacity of 200 tons/year for spent light-water reactor fuel. However, currently one cannot exclude the possibility of the new facility being constructed to reprocess spent fuel of fast breeder reactors (even though there are no available sources to show CNNC currently plans to build this kind of facility soon).

Figure 6. Zoom of the MOX facility shown in Figure 1.

Figure 7. Schematic diagram of a proposed MOX project, posted by CNPE in May 2018.

Since 2018 CNNC has also been building a demonstration mixed uranium-plutonium oxide (MOX) fuel fabrication line with a capacity of 20 tons/year near the demonstration reprocessing plant. As shown in satellite image (Figure 6), the construction had been completed by November 2024. Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the MOX project proposed by China Nuclear Power Engineering (CNPE, a subsidiary of CNNC), which is responsible for the design of the facility. A comparison of the satellite image with the diagram shows that all the buildings have been completed as designed. Since 2019, the company has started ordering equipment for the MOX fabrication line. It is expected to be commissioned by 2025.

This MOX facility is believed to supply the fuel for China's second CFR-600 breeder reactor, which is under construction since 2020 and expected to become operational in 2026. Russia supplies the lifetime fuel (first HEU or later MOX) for China's first CFR-600, which started operation in 2023.