THE government of Chongqing Municipality said Tuesday it planned to build a nuclear power plant, that will be the first of its kind in southwestern China.

The government intends to use nuclear power to ensure a stable electricity supply, according to an urban planning document for 2007-2020 posted on its Web site.

Chongqing currently relies on hydropower and coal for electricity generation but droughts and tight coal supplies have recently threatened the largest city in southwestern China’s power supply.

But the Chongqing Government didn’t elaborate on the nuclear power plan. It still needs Central Government approval before construction can begin.

China has built about 10 nuclear power plants in the eastern coastal region, with a combined capacity of 10 gigawatts (GW), which accounts for about 1.9 percent of the country’s electricity generation.

The Central Government plans to increase China’s nuclear power capacity to 40 GW by 2020, which means about 30 more power plants will be built.

Besides Chongqing, the governments in central inland provinces of Hubei, Hunan and Anhui have also initiated proposals to build nuclear power plants and are awaiting Central Government approval.

(SD-Agencies)