China Is Rapidly Building Nuclear Power Plants as the Rest of the World Stalls

The technology is far from revolutionary, but Beijing is no longer simply copying. Last year it started commercial operations at Shidaowan One, the world’s first high-temperature gas-cooled reactor, a so-called fourth-generation technology. It heats up helium instead of water to produce power, an important consideration for plants farther from the coast. According to Stephen Ezell, vice president for global innovation policy at the Washington, DC-based Information Technology & Innovation Foundation, China likely stands 10 to 15 years ahead of the US in its ability to deploy fourth-generation nuclear reactors at scale.