Central Enterprise Reorganization and Nuclear Power Reorganization

The nuclear power industry has also ushered in the "integration" of two central enterprises following the North South Railway Vehicles. On the evening of February 3rd, the listed companies of China Electric Power Investment Group, including Shanghai Electric Power, Jidian Co., Ltd., and Dongfang Energy, issued advisory announcements with the same wording, confirming that the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council has initiated the restructuring of China Electric Power Investment and National Nuclear Power Technology Corporation. As an industry monopolized by state-owned capital, nuclear power construction is led by CGN and CNNC. The industry believes that the above restructuring is complementary and is expected to become the third pole of the nuclear power industry, forming a tripartite balance. At the same time, the number of central enterprises will also decrease due to the above-mentioned restructuring; With the continuous reform of central enterprises through restructuring and merger, the total number of central enterprises is expected to halve in the next few years. As the number decreases, there will be more central enterprise brands that have the strength to compete in the market, similar to North South cars. On January 20th, the opening price of Shanghai Electric Power was 7.90 yuan on the A-share market, and on February 5th, its closing price was 13.85 yuan. In just half a month, the cumulative increase was 75.32%; While the market has been experiencing ups and downs, the concept of nuclear power has driven Shanghai Electric Power to become popular all the way. The more noteworthy reason is the reorganization of its controlling shareholders; On the evening of February 3rd, the listed companies of China Power Investment Group Corporation (hereinafter referred to as "China Power Investment"), including Shanghai Electric Power, Jidian Co., Ltd., Dongfang Energy, Opencast Coal, and China Power Yuanda, issued announcements simultaneously, confirming that the restructuring work between China Power Investment and National Nuclear Power Technology Corporation (hereinafter referred to as "National Nuclear Power") has started. At the end of last year, there was news in the market that the decision-making level was preparing to merge the two central enterprises mentioned above. By the beginning of this year, there was news that the merger had been approved. According to public information, China Power Investment Group was established on December 29, 2002, and is one of the five largest power generation groups in China, as well as one of the three largest nuclear power development and construction operators. On May 22, 2007, the National Nuclear Power Plant was inaugurated and is considered "born in the spring of nuclear power development.". The company has independent research and development capabilities, and so far has owned the third generation pressurized water reactor type nuclear power plant complete technology CAP1400 with independent intellectual property rights. At the same time, the domesticated standard design of the AP1000 imported and absorbed from abroad has been completed. "The merger of the two companies is not only an expansion of scale, but more importantly, it can make up for the shortcomings of technological innovation," Lu Qizhou, general manager of China Power Investment Corporation, said in a media interview. Lin Boqiang, director of the Energy Economy Collaborative Innovation Center of Xiamen University, told the Beijing News that the merger of China Power Investment and National Nuclear Power is a combination of technology and projects. The restructuring of the two companies has formed a relatively complete nuclear power company, and the domestic nuclear power industry has finally formed a competitive pattern of three companies. It is worth noting that Wang Binghua, currently the chairman of the National Nuclear Power Corporation, held the post of Secretary of the Party Leadership Group and General Manager of China Power Investment Group before the establishment of the National Nuclear Power Corporation. There is a view that Wang Binghua is expected to become the helm of the restructured company. On February 9th, the relevant person in charge of the SASAC told the Beijing News that there was currently no new progress in the restructuring work that could be announced to the public. The domestic nuclear power construction is far from reaching the "standard". Due to various demands such as environmental pressure, high-level promotion, and high-end manufacturing industry "going global", the construction of nuclear power plants in China has recently begun to resume. On November 19, 2014, the General Office of the State Council issued the "Notice on Printing and Distributing the Strategic Action Plan for Energy Development (2014-2020)", proposing to launch new nuclear power projects in the eastern coastal areas in a timely manner, and study and demonstrate the construction of inland nuclear power. On December 4, 2014, Li Pumin, Secretary General of the National Development and Reform Commission, stated that China has included coastal nuclear power projects in the construction of major national projects and launched a number of coastal nuclear power projects. We should adhere to safe and innovative development, adhere to the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and comprehensively enhance the core competitiveness of the nuclear industry. Wang Xiaokun, a new energy analyst at Zhuochuang Information, told the Beijing News that after the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan in March 2011, domestic nuclear power construction was temporarily suspended. Previously, although there had been progress in coastal areas such as Guangdong, Jiangsu, and Fujian, it accounted for less than 2% of all electricity generation. On February 6, 2015, the 2014 National Nuclear Power Operation Report released by the China Nuclear Energy Industry Association showed that in 2014, a total of 5 nuclear power units in China were put into commercial operation. So far, China has put a total of 22 nuclear power units into commercial operation, with a total installed capacity of 20.3 million kilowatts. In 2014, the cumulative power generation of 22 commercial nuclear power units was 130.58 billion kWh, accounting for approximately 2.39% of the total power generation in the country. Despite this, domestic nuclear power construction is still far from the previously set goals. China's Medium and Long Term Nuclear Power Development Plan (2011-2020) requires that by 2015, China's installed nuclear power capacity in operation will reach 40 million kilowatts, and 18 million kilowatts are under construction. By 2020, China will have 58 million kilowatts of installed nuclear power in operation and 30 million kilowatts under construction. To achieve the above goals, the calculation result of Shenyin Wanguo Research Report is that the compound annual growth rate of the nuclear power industry from 2014 to 2020 must reach 18%. Therefore, Wang Xiaokun believes that at the end of 2014, domestic nuclear power began to truly restart. According to her prediction, there may be eight to nine new nuclear power units this year. "The listing and financing of CGN and CNNC is also due to the need for a large amount of capital to be invested in construction," Wang Xiaokun said. Indeed, in December of last year, China Guangdong Nuclear Power Co., Ltd. (CGNPC) launched an IPO in Hong Kong, raising more than HK $20 billion, making it the first domestic nuclear power company. Meanwhile, nuclear power giants China Nuclear Power Corporation and China Nuclear Power Construction Corporation have also issued prospectuses. On January 28th, Premier Li Keqiang chaired a State Council executive meeting to accelerate the "going global" of Chinese equipment such as railways, nuclear power, and building materials production lines, promote international production capacity cooperation, and enhance the level of cooperation. The meeting determined to vigorously explore the international market for major equipment such as railways and nuclear power, integrate industry resources, and innovate foreign cooperation models. If it is said that the new combination of China Nuclear Power Corporation, China Guangdong Nuclear Power Corporation, China Power Investment Corporation, and China National Nuclear Power Corporation will form a tripartite situation for domestic nuclear power, then in the competition in the international market, Chinese nuclear power enterprises have not yet ranked among the strong. Nuclear power plants have been built in mature markets such as Europe and the United States for decades. The nuclear power technology currently used is also in the hands of international nuclear power giants such as AREVA, Westinghouse, EDF, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Many nuclear power plants built and used in China also have the presence of international giants. There is still a long way to go for China's future three nuclear power central enterprises to compete with giants. It is understood that China's current independently developed nuclear power technology is mainly based on the "Hualong No. 1" jointly developed by China Nuclear Power Corporation and China Guangdong Nuclear Power Corporation, as well as the CAP1400 of National Nuclear Power Corporation. Lin Boqiang said that nuclear power follows the path of high-speed rail, but there is still a distance from the technical status of high-speed rail. "Overseas, our competitiveness is mainly due to low labor and equipment costs, as well as the ability to complete on time." Currently, China's nuclear power technology strength is not as strong as international giants, and third-generation technology still needs to be further mature. "The CAP1400 of National Nuclear Power has been delayed in implementation due to the need for improvement in technology, and the merger of the two is expected to accelerate technological maturity and launch. In addition, we have not seen the completion of the 'Hualong 1' project," said Lin Boqiang, "But we have time to catch up. In the future, a large portion of the global market for nuclear power plants will be built in China. At the beginning, our high-speed railway did not have an advantage, but now we have considerable strength through our own construction and learning." The large amount of nuclear power shipped to the sea exceeds 10 billion dollars. According to the prediction of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the global nuclear power installed capacity will increase by at least 40% by 2030. In the next 10 years, apart from China, there will be approximately 60 to 70 1 megawatt nuclear power units constructed worldwide, and the overseas nuclear power market space will reach 1 trillion yuan. Outside the Chinese market, there are numerous international giants, and as latecomers, "Made in China" nuclear power still wants to try its hand at sea. Similar to high-speed rail, nuclear power has repeatedly become the "Made in China" national business card promoted by national leaders during visits. In 2014, with the diplomatic activities of leaders, China's nuclear power enterprises signed cooperation documents with France, Argentina, Italy, Spain, Canada, the Czech Republic, Kazakhstan, and other countries. "Hualong No.1", jointly built by China Nuclear Power and China Guangdong Nuclear Power, has taken the lead in becoming a flagship product of China's nuclear power "going global". On February 5th, the President of Argentina announced that Argentina and China had signed a nuclear power cooperation agreement to build two nuclear power plants using Chinese technology (i.e., "Hualong 1"), with a total investment of over 12.8 billion US dollars. Zheng Dandan, an analyst with Huatai Securities, believes that the export of "Hualong No.1" nuclear power technology to Latin America, to a certain extent, reflects the recognition of China's independent third-generation nuclear power technology in the international market, and has taken an important step towards the export of third-generation nuclear power technology. This is the beginning of China's nuclear power "going global". In international competition, China's nuclear power, which is not yet among the strongest, still needs to be further strengthened. Merging and concentrating forces may be an option. The restructuring of central enterprises will continue at the end of 2014. The journal China Nuclear Industry, a subsidiary of China Nuclear Power Group, once published an article entitled "Integrating resources to establish a capital investment company is suitable for the path of a powerful nuclear industry country", believing that the merger model of CSR and CSR is of great significance for nuclear power. According to the article, the current pattern of China's nuclear industry is similar to that of the North South car industry, both of which have experienced a process from centralization and unification to decentralization. In the process of moving towards the international market, the nuclear industry needs to concentrate its efforts and enhance its international competitiveness. Recently, it was reported that under the direct instruction of the State Council, the National Development and Reform Commission is taking the lead in formulating the "Guiding Opinions on Accelerating the Going Global of Equipment". Currently, the first draft has been completed, and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Commerce will also cooperate with the opinions to introduce policies. The industries supported include railways, nuclear power, building materials production lines, steel, non ferrous metals, building materials, light textiles, etc. Li Jin, Vice President of the China Enterprise Reform and Development Research Association, told the Beijing News that the merger of central enterprises is a major trend. Since last year, Huafu has been merged into COFCO, and at the end of the year, North South Motors has been merged. At the beginning of this year, both China Power Investment Corporation and China National Nuclear Power Corporation have been restructured for this reason. Li Jin said that central enterprises need to slim down and transform from being overweight to becoming stronger and better. "The merger of central enterprises has been brewing for many years, and has been talked about in previous years, but it has not been implemented. This year, there will be a concentrated emergence of the merger of central enterprises, which will reach a climax. Especially in industries with the goal of internationalization, they will adopt the method of strong alliance to form a large group." Li Jin said that the SASAC is drafting a document on accelerating the restructuring and layout of central enterprises. "Within five to seven years, the number of central enterprises will be reduced to half of the current level." He added, "Although the number will decrease, the overall strength will strengthen with the merger." China's nuclear power industry is a three-pronged situation. CGN CGN is the only central enterprise in China that focuses on nuclear power and is supervised by the State Council's State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. ". Nuclear power station projects include Daya Bay Nuclear Power Station, Ling'ao Nuclear Power Station Phase I, Ling'ao Nuclear Power Station Phase II, etc. Currently, the main nuclear power technology in China, "Hualong No.1", includes the ACPR1000+technology of CGN. The nuclear power business of China Nuclear Power Group includes the first nuclear power plant designed and constructed by China, the Qinshan Phase I nuclear power plant, and the subsequent Qinshan Phase II and III nuclear power plants, the Tianwan nuclear power plant jointly constructed by China and Russia, and the Chashma nuclear power plant exported to Pakistan. Currently, among the main nuclear power technologies in China, "Hualong No.1" and "CAP1400", the former is a combination of two technologies, CNNC ACP1000 and CGN ACPR1000+. Founded in 2002, China Power Investment National Nuclear Power Corporation is the only nuclear power development and construction operator in China, except for China Nuclear Power Corporation and China Guangdong Nuclear Power Corporation. It is also one of the five largest power generation groups in the country, but with the smallest scale. National nuclear power was born the latest (in 2007) and has one of the two main forces of China's third generation nuclear power technology, "CAP1400".