First concrete poured for Bailong 2, the second CAP1000 unit in Guangxi
Serguey Asael Shinder1 min readConstruction of the second reactor at the Bailong nuclear power plant in southern China's Guangxi region formally began on 27 September, when State Power Investment Corporation started pouring first concrete for the unit's nuclear island at 18:27, according to World Nuclear News, citing a report by the state broadcaster CCTV. The pour was expected to use 6,637 cubic metres of concrete over 58 hours.
Both units of the plant's first phase are now officially under construction. First concrete for unit 1 was poured on 22 December 2025, a pour of 6,662 cubic metres that took just over 64 hours, according to SPIC's design subsidiary SNERDI.
The two units are CAP1000 pressurised water reactors, the Chinese version of the Westinghouse AP1000, each rated at 1.25 GW. They were among 11 new reactors approved by China's State Council in August 2024. SPIC plans an investment of about CNY40 billion, around $5.6 billion, for the pair, with a planned construction period of 56 months. Once running, the first phase is expected to generate about 20 billion kWh a year.
The site on the Jiangshan Peninsula in Fangchenggang is planned for six units with a total of 8.62 GW. Four larger CAP1400 reactors are proposed for later phases. The plant lies about 24 kilometres from the border with Vietnam and about 30 kilometres from China General Nuclear's Fangchenggang plant.
What it means
Nine months between first concrete on two sister units is the kind of rhythm that lets a builder move crews and equipment from one unit to the next. If the 56 months are counted from each first concrete pour and held, the units would enter service in 2030 and 2031; the CAP1400 phases are proposals, not approvals.