US lags behind China in nuclear energy development
Shafaq News/ The United States is falling behind China in the development of nuclear energy, trailing the Asian giant by 10 to 15 years in the deployment of next-generation reactors, according to a report by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF).
China currently has 27 nuclear reactors under development, with an average completion time of seven years – much faster than in most other countries, the ITIF said in its report released on Sunday.
Between 2008 and 2023, China's share of nuclear patents surged from 1.3 percent to 13.4 percent, and the country now leads in the number of nuclear fusion patent applications, the Washington-based research institute found.
The report attributed Beijing's rapid progress to a "coherent national strategy" that includes low-interest financing, feed-in tariffs, and streamlined regulatory approvals. "China's government has assigned considerable priority to domestic nuclear reactor construction as part of Beijing's broader energy strategy," the report stated.
Looking ahead, China appears poised to leverage its established domestic nuclear capacity for competitive reactor exports, akin to its 'dual-circulation' strategy in other sectors such as electric vehicles and batteries, the report suggested.
The institute criticized a common narrative that portrays China as merely a copier and the US as the primary innovator, suggesting this mindset has led to complacency in US industrial policy. "First, this assumption is misguided because innovators can lose leadership to copiers with lower cost structures, as we have seen in many US industries, including consumer electronics, semiconductors, solar panels, telecom equipment, machine tools, and, as noted here, quite possibly, nuclear power. Second, it's not clear that China is a sluggish copier and always destined to be a follower," the report said.
Despite its lag in reactor development, the US remains the leading country in nuclear power generation, ahead of France and China, with its 94 reactors accounting for about one-third of global output. However, the US has built only two new reactors in the past decade, both of which were completed years late and billions of dollars over budget.
In contrast, China unveiled the world's first fourth-generation nuclear plant at Shidao Bay in eastern Shandong province last December. Chinese state media have touted these reactors as being safer and more efficient than previous generations, utilizing gas for cooling instead of pressurized water.
