Introduction
China is charting a bold path toward a cleaner energy future. As the world’s largest energy consumer, the country is actively transforming its power system while maintaining reliability and affordability. Although coal currently accounts for more than half of electricity generation, President Xi Jinping has pledged to “strictly control” coal expansion during 2026–2030 as part of China’s commitment to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. In this context, the innovative Coal-to-Nuclear (C2N) project represents a pioneering approach to accelerate decarbonization.
The CEEC and Xiamen University have jointly published a series of papers and filed multiple patents together.
People in both Xiamen University and CEEC are actively involved in Repower Initiative. Dr. ZHANG Yaoli from Xiamen University and Mr. LI Wei from CEEC are partners in Repower Initiative.
The Repower Initiative has highlighted this collaboration as a leading example of innovative pathways for decarbonisation
Why C2N in China?
The scale of China’s coal fleet is enormous: it totals around 1172 gigawatts (GW) of installed capacity, and about 100 GW of that capacity is slated for retirement by 2030. Instead of demolishing those sites, the C2N plan proposes to reuse the grid connections, cooling systems and land to host new reactors. This reuse aims to save costs, shorten timelines and ease land shortages, especially in coastal provinces where electricity demand is high and available land is scarce.
The strategy responds to two simultaneous challenges: on the one hand, the need to retire polluting plants; on the other, the urgency of replacing them with low-emission sources. C2N offers an intermediate solution: transforming coal facilities into nuclear plants that can supply clean power while reusing existing infrastructure.
The C2N Strategy
At the core of the C2N plan is the installation of advanced nuclear reactors at coal plant sites. According to CEEC and Chinese media, fourth-generation reactors—such as high-temperature gas-cooled reactors (HTGRs) and thorium molten-salt reactors—would be used. These designs generate steam at much higher temperatures than pressurised-water reactors and require less water, so they can integrate better with the steam turbines of coal plants. Moreover, their intrinsic safety systems allow for smaller safety zones around the plant, making it easier to site them in populated areas.
CEEC notes that the strategy takes advantage of existing transmission lines, access to cooling water and plant land, which cuts permitting and investment requirements. China is also building seven to eight new reactors per year and experimenting with advanced designs, giving it an edge in launching such conversions.
Project engineers acknowledge that the transition could take decades, given the scale of China’s coal power fleet and the long construction cycles of nuclear projects.
Repowering Models
A recent academic study by (CPECC), a subsidiary of the state-owned China Energy Engineering Group (CEEC) and Xiamen University (Zhang et al., 2024), identifies three conversion approaches, each involving different degrees of infrastructure reuse:
Repowering concepts can be broadly classified into three levels of infrastructure reuse — ranging from replacing only the heat source to complete plant reconstruction.
This framework has been outlined in international retrofit studies (Qvist et al., 2021) and is now being considered conceptually in China under the C2N framework, although no official cost figures or technical details have yet been published by Chinese institutions.
- Heat-source replacement: replacing the coal boilers with advanced nuclear reactors while keeping the steam turbines and other equipment. This approach would require high-temperature or sodium-cooled fast reactors capable of supplying sufficient heat for existing turbines.
- Partial replacement: replacing both boilers and turbines while retaining cooling systems and grid connections. This pathway may offer moderate capital savings compared to greenfield construction.
- Complete replacement: retaining only the land and grid connection, while rebuilding the rest of the plant. This option is suitable for fully decommissioned sites and avoids the complexity of retrofitting older equipment.
The suitability of each approach depends on site-specific factors such as geology, proximity to water, and population density.
While new inland nuclear projects have not received approvals since the 2011 Fukushima accident, most current and near-term developments — and thus the most suitable C2N opportunities — remain concentrated in coastal provinces.
In the longer term, however, the China Nuclear Energy Development Report (2025) notes that both coastal and inland coal power sites may offer potential for conversion as fourth-generation reactor technologies mature, including at non-bedrock and island sites.
Findings from the Research
According to a concept paper developed by the China Power Engineering Consulting Group (CPECC), a subsidiary of the state-owned China Energy Engineering Group (CEEC) and Xiamen University’s studies, repurposing existing coal plant sites for advanced nuclear reactors could significantly shorten construction timelines and reduce overall costs, as much of the existing grid and cooling infrastructure could be reused. Researchers highlight that this approach could help accelerate China’s decarbonisation while preserving grid stability traditionally provided by coal.
At the same time, the research underscores substantial challenges: the high upfront cost of nuclear deployment, complex licensing processes, and the need for careful technology matching—since only certain advanced reactors, such as high-temperature gas-cooled designs, can meet the thermal requirements of existing coal turbines. Public communication and safety assurance are also identified as key factors for gaining acceptance.
Global Perspective and Future
Although China is the driving force, the idea of repurposing coal plants is not exclusive to it. The U.S. Department of Energy has identified hundreds of coal sites that could host modular reactors in the future. Additionally, companies like TerraPower are already building a sodium-cooled fast reactor on the site of a former coal plant in Wyoming. These initiatives show that reusing fossil infrastructure for advanced nuclear technologies could become a global trend.
The potential of C2N is enormous: if all coal plants with access to water are considered, the capacity eligible for conversion would be almost four times the current global nuclear capacity. However, as the academic literature emphasises, C2N remains at a conceptual stage, and many questions remain to be addressed—from decommissioning schedules to nuclear fuel management and community engagement.
Further insights can be found in the CPEEC Study: Review and Prospects for Converting Coal Plants to Nuclear Plants.
References
https://www.business-standard.com/world-news/china-coal-to-nuclear-shift-clean-green-energy-htgr-thorium-reactors-125091500694_1.html
https://www.powermag.com/chinese-officials-look-at-converting-old-coal-plants-to-nuclear-power-stations
https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3325263/china-mulls-converting-coal-fired-power-plants-nuclear-facilities
https://www.nucnet.org/news/china-state-group-puts-forward-plans-for-coal-to-nuclear-revolution-9-2-2025
https://interestingengineering.com/energy/china-coal-to-nuclear-transition
https://www.the-innovation.org/article/doi/10.59717/j.xinn-energy.2024.100067
Qvist, S., Gładysz, P., Bartela, Ł., & Sowiżdżał, A. (2021). Retrofit Decarbonization of Coal Power Plants—A Case Study for Poland. Energies, 14(1), 120. https://doi.org/10.3390/en14010120