China Jajaki Nuclear Power for AI, Small Reactor Prepared to Supply Electricity

JAKARTA - China is beginning to explore nuclear power to meet the surge in electricity demand from the artificial intelligence or AI industry. In the midst of the growth in the use of AI models and data centers, a large and stable electricity supply is now a major need.

Quoted from China Daily, Thursday, April 9, the impetus came as the so-called token economy, which is AI activity based on the processing of tokens or basic data units in a large language model, strengthened.

CNNC Hainan Nuclear Power Co Chairman Wei Zhigang said AI has triggered global computing demand on an unprecedented scale. According to Wei Zhigang, the biggest obstacle now is the need for large amounts of electricity and a stable supply.

Wei said that large technology companies such as Microsoft and Google are also exploring the use of small modular reactors (SMRs) to supply electricity to AI data centers. SMRs are nuclear reactors that are smaller and more compact than conventional reactors.

The Linglong One project, which is billed as the world's first commercial land-based SMR, is now nearing completion. China Daily reported that about 90 percent of the installation has been completed and the core equipment is undergoing adjustments. The reactor is targeted to start commercial operation this year.

Wei Zhigang said one of the advantages of SMR is its more flexible placement. These reactors can be built closer to locations that require large amounts of electricity, including computing centers.

CNNC is also exploring the construction of a nuclear-powered zero-carbon industrial park in the Changjiang Li Autonomous County, Hainan Province. This area is being prepared as a joint pilot zone for nuclear energy and computing.

When completed, Linglong One is expected to generate 1 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity per year. That's enough to supply 526,000 households and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 880,000 tons, equivalent to planting 7.5 million trees.

Linglong One is also referred to as the first commercial land-based SMR that passed the safety review of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Wei Zhigang likened the development of this reactor to the change from a desktop computer to a laptop. More compact, practical, and safe.

China Daily also reported that more than 1,000 visitors from nearly 90 countries and regions have come to Hainan to review the reactor, including IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi. He previously said that nuclear power has the potential to become an energy partner for the AI revolution.

At the same time, the use of Chinese AI models has increased. From March 30 to Sunday, global weekly use of Chinese AI models reached 12.96 trillion tokens, up 31.5 percent. The US-made AI model recorded 3.03 trillion tokens, up 0.76 percent. The Chinese government also included computing and electricity synergies as a national priority in the 2026 Government Work Report.