TNAG-1507-FCO40-2065-Guangdong-nuclear-power-station-project-at-Daya-Bay-safety-c-1986 — Page 111

HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL'

16 July 1986

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there was no objection. The company needed assurance that a financing plan submitted in the future showing purchases of electricity from the plant would not be denied approval. The feasibility study recognised this when it reached the conclusion that both the Guangdong Power Co. and China Light should recommend to their respective Boards of Directors and Government authorities that the joint venture should be established.

The Government's prime concern in the context of the scheme of control is. of course, to ensure that consumers get a fair deal. Thus, an important consideration was that the cost of electricity generated by the nuclear power station should be no more expensive than it would have been had it been generated by a conventional station built in Hong Kong.

Questions of safety and design were, of course, given full and appropriate consideration. Before a decision was taken to inform the Hong Kong Nuclear investment Co, and China Light that the Government had no objection to their entering into contractual arrangements to participate in the joint venture, an important consideration taken into account was the safety of the plant both in construction and operation. In this connection, many already know that the design of the station will be very similar to that of Units 5 and 6 of the Gravelines Nuclear Power Station in France. The French stations are built in accordance with tried and tested technology. Another relevant factor in relation to safety was that the National Nuclear Safety Bureau had been established by China. This bureau will co-operate with the Franch Central Service for the safety of this nuclear installation, and will be responsible for ensuring that the Daya Bay plant complies in every respect with the safety requirements laid down in France and adopted by other international organisations. So. Members of the Council at one of the briefing sessions have heard from representatives of the joint venture company that the design basis for Franch power stations is that no evacuation must be necessary. 10 km outside the plant even in the event of a serious accident; I wish to add that this fact was also taken into account when the decision was made by the Government that there was no objection to China Light and its subsidiary participating in the project.

The arrangements between Hong Kong Nuclear Investment Co. and the Guangdong Nuclear Investment Co. require that the highest international safety standards will govern the design. manufacture, erection, and com- missioning and operation of the Daya Bay plant. In addition, they provide for the examination, inspection and acceptance of all the equipment and parts throughout the process of construction and commissioning. As Members well know, the standards to be applied will be those implemented on existing French plants together with applicable international standards, principally those of the International Atomic Energy Agency and the International Commission on Radiological Protection as well as applicable standards laid down by the Chinese authorities.