A report released on Monday highlights a significant gap between the United States and China in developing high-tech nuclear power, with the US lagging 15 years behind China.
According to the US-based research institute Information Technology & Innovation Foundation, China's rapid advancements in nuclear energy are attributed to its strategic state-backed approach and substantial financial investments, which have given Chinese firms a notable competitive advantage over their Western counterparts.
China currently leads globally in nuclear energy advocacy, having constructed 27 nuclear reactors, each with an average construction period of approximately seven years, considerably quicker than other nations.
The country has also set ambitious targets to erect 150 new nuclear reactors from 2020 to 2035. A pivotal milestone for China has been the operational launch of the world's first fourth-generation nuclear reactor, for which it claims to have independently developed about 90% of the requisite technology.
Additionally, China has taken the lead in developing and introducing cost-effective small modular reactors (SMRs), enhancing its competitive edge in nuclear technology deployment.
That is the result of the demonization of nuclear power generation by a scientifically ignorant and emotional public.
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