China has begun the preliminary work on its sixth nuclear power plant at Sanmen County, in Zhejiang Province on the east coast.

The building of a 3.14-kilometer (1.95 miles) road is among the first projects for the Sanmen nuclear plant, which will have four generators each with a capacity of one million kilowatts, official sources said.

The plant is expected to cost 25 billion yuan (US$3.02 billion).

Starting from the second quarter of this year, three hills will be leveled to prepare the ground for the plant, the sources said.

China now has two nuclear facilities in operation -- the Dayawan plant in Guangdong and the Qinshan plant in Zhejiang.

Three others are currently under construction, including the Qinshan plant, now in its second phase, the Tianwan plant in Jiangsu Province, and the Ling'ao plant in Guangdong.

(China Daily January 7, 2002)