China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) held a side event at the 60th General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna, Austria on Sept 27 to introduce its ACP100 small modular reactor technology.

More than 100 experts from around the world attended the event and they were deeply impressed by the ACP100's capabilities.

The Chinese-developed nuclear reactor is considered much safer and is more energy efficient than other second- and third-generation reactors.

Shi Zhongjun, China’s ambassador to the United Nations in Vienna, said that CNNC has always persisted in developing nuclear energy for the benefit of mankind and to contribute to the global nuclear industry.

Construction on the first pilot projects of HPR1000, CNNC's third-generation nuclear power technology, are running smoothly both at home and abroad, and China's self-developed small multifunctional ACP100 reactor is also ready to be deployed in new projects.

CNNC began developing the ACP100 in 2004, and after 12 years of work the reactor passed the IAEA’s generic reactor safety review in April 2016. China is now preparing to launch its first small modular reactor demonstration project.

Li Xiaoming, assistant president of CNNC, said in a speech at the meeting that CNNC is the only State-owned enterprise that covers the entire nuclear industry supply chain, from mining to waste disposal. Over the past six decades, CNNC has developed a complete system covering the entire nuclear fuel cycle.