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Liu Zhen

China will soon start building a 30,000-tonne nuclear-powered ship described in the tender documents as an “experimental platform”.
The country does not yet have a nuclear-propelled surface vessel, although its fast-growing navy is widely believed to have nuclear aircraft carriers in the pipeline.
China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN) has invited bids for the contract to build a vessel 152 metres long (498 feet), 30 metres wide and 18 metres in depth, with displacement of 30,000 tonnes (33,069 tons).
The specification is small for an aircraft carrier, but a military affairs expert said it would help develop China’s shipbuilding ability. At present, its only nuclear-powered vessels are submarines.
How China could move closer to nuclear-powered aircraft carriers
The deadline for interested parties to tender was Wednesday, with no bids permitted from outside mainland China.
The ship will be able to be fitted with two 25 megawatt compact pressurised water reactors with thermal power output of 200MW, which could propel the ship to a maximum speed of 11.5 knots, according to CGN’s project description.
It does not specify the use for the ship, referring to it only as “experimental ship platform”.
Hong Kong-based military commentator Song Zhongping said the vessel’s size was very similar to that of Russian nuclear icebreakers.




Russia is the only country that operates nuclear icebreakers. Its two classes in service are the Taymyr-class vessel – which is 150 metres long, 29 metres wide and has 21,100 tonnes of displacement – and the Arktika-class vessel, which measures 148 metres long by 30 metres wide, and comes in at 23,000 tonnes. An even larger class of icebreakers – 173 metres by 34 metres with displacement of 33,540 tonnes – is under construction.
In June, state-owned China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) also invited bids for a nuclear-powered icebreaker project that will be powered by floating small modular reactors.
Having an icebreaker is important to China as it expands its operations in the Arctic Ocean. Its first domestically built, conventionally powered polar icebreaker, Xuelong 2, was launched last year to boost China’s polar research and expedition capacity. The ship will enter service later this year.
If experiments using icebreakers went well, the technology and experience could be used for next-generation aircraft carriers, Song said.
“This vessel can verify and experiment with the technologies,” he said.
China ‘will build 4 nuclear aircraft carriers’ in drive to catch US Navy
This follows the approach that the former Soviet Union took in its development of nuclear aircraft carriers. The Soviets had built five nuclear icebreakers before cutting steel in 1988 for their first nuclear carrier Ulyanovsk, which was never completed.
China has two conventionally powered aircraft carriers: the Liaoning, a former Soviet Kuznetsov-class vessel bought from Ukraine, and the Type 001A, a domestically-made vessel based on the Liaoning and to be commissioned soon.

The reactors to be fitted on the planned CGN vessel are relatively small, which means several of them would be needed to power a carrier. In a similar case, the USS Enterprise (CVN-65), the world’s first nuclear aircraft carrier, commissioned in 1961, had eight reactors of 150MW each.
By contrast, the present US Nimitz-class carriers use two reactors of 550MW each, and the Ford-class two of 700MW each.
Besides aircraft carriers, nuclear reactors can be fitted to other large surface vessels, both civilian and military. These include cargo ships, science survey ships and tracking vessels such as the Yuanwang-class ships deployed to long distances by the Chinese navy to track satellites, transmit space communications and monitor intercontinental ballistic missiles, Song said.


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Could China’s ‘experimental’ ship be the world’s biggest nuclear-powered icebreaker?

Russia’s Taymyr-class icebreaker has similar dimensions to China’s proposed ship. Photo: Handout

graphic for online

China breaks the Arctic ice with launch of new research vessel Snow Dragon II

Icebreaker could pave the way for nuclear powered super ship but for now it’s all about exploration and scientific surveys

People attend the launch ceremony of China's first domestically built polar icebreaker Xuelong 2, or Snow Dragon 2, at a shipyard in Shanghai, China September 10, 2018. Picture taken September 10, 2018. REUTERS/Stringer ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. CHINA OUT.

China’s polar research vessel Xuelong 2 is the only vessel of its type that can break ice while going forwards or backwards. Photo: Xinhua

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Two J-20 stealth fighter jets perform at an air show in Guangdong province last year. Although they are among China’s most advanced planes, they still rely on Russian engines. Photo: AP

Type 99A battle tanks participate in a military parade at Tiananmen Square in Beijing on September 3, 2015, to mark the 70th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II. China kicked off a huge military ceremony marking the 70th anniversary of Japan's defeat in World War II on September 3, as major Western leaders stayed away. AFP PHOTO / GREG BAKER

Soldiers of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) take part in a military parade to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the foundation of the army at the Zhurihe military training base in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China, July 30, 2017. China Daily via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. CHINA OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN CHINA.

China eyes bigger role in growing Middle East arms trade

CSIC promoted its unmanned 20-tonne Aegis-class destroyer at a regional defence show in Abu Dhabi last week. Photo: QQ

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State-owned firm China General Nuclear Power Group invites bids to build vessel similar in size to Russian nuclear icebreakers
Project could be stepping stone to building nuclear aircraft carriers


State-owned firm China General Nuclear Power Group invites bids to build vessel similar in size to Russian nuclear icebreakers, in potential stepping stone to building nuclear aircraft carriers.


Exclusive | Could China’s ‘experimental’ ship be the world’s biggest nuclear-powered icebreaker?

State-owned firm China General Nuclear Power Group invites bids to build vessel similar in size to Russian nuclear icebreakers Project could be stepping stone to building nuclear aircraft carriers

State-owned firm China General Nuclear Power Group invites bids to build vessel similar in size to Russian nuclear icebreakers

Project could be stepping stone to building nuclear aircraft carriers