In addition to the four AP1000 reactors under construction in China, four more will also be built in the United States: two at the Vogtle site in Georgia and two at the V.C. Summer site in South Carolina.

Westinghouse and State Nuclear Power reached an agreement in 2008 to work on the development of the CAP1400 reactor, followed by a more advanced design, the CAP1700.

In December 2009, a joint venture was set up between State Nuclear Power and China Huaneng Group to build a CAP1400 reactor near Rongcheng, Shandong province. Construction is expected to start in 2013, and the reactor will start operations in 2017.

Wang Binghua, chairman of State Nuclear Power, said at the press conference on Friday that initial research on the CAP1700 will also kick off this year.

Some experts have expressed concerns over the prospects for exports of CAP1400 reactors.

Lin Boqiang, head of the China Center for Energy Economics Research at Xiamen University, said the CAP1400 is far less recognized in the global market than the AP1000.

"While the global demand for nuclear energy remains sluggish after the Fukushima nuclear crisis in Japan, why would anyone choose new technology over an already established brand?"

Lin said that although China owns the intellectual rights for the CAP1400 — in return for opening up the domestic market to Westinghouse's AP1000 — the core technology might still be in the hands of the US company, thus Westinghouse will be able to take a share of the profits even if the CAP1400 does get overseas contracts.

According to Gu, about 90 percent of the localization of the AP1000 technology has been completed, and large parts can be completely made in Chinese factories.

"Still, China needs to build 20 to 30 CAP1400 units for its domestic market before the brand can establish its global image," Lin said.

The nation's long-term development target for nuclear power plants has shrunk compared to the one in place before the Fukushima disaster in 2011.

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