The Hongyanhe nuclear power plant in Liaoning province is the first nuclear power plant in Northeast China. This photo shows the power plant's No.1 unit and its internal secondary power facilities. [Photo/Xinhua]

On Feb. 17, 2013, at 3:09 p.m., the Hongyanhe nuclear power plant No.1 unit for the first time successfully merged power grids and in doing so officially entered its debugging phase, indicating it can now generate electricity.

The Hongyanhe nuclear power plant is the first approved and constructed nuclear power project of China's Eleventh Five-Year Plan. Its construction started in August of 2007, with an investment of 50 billion yuan for the first phase of project, and the construction of four sets of one-kilowatt nuclear power units.

With all four units put into operation, the plant's productivity can reduce coal consumption by some ten million tons, reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 24 million tons, reduce sulfur dioxide emissions by 230,000 tons, and nitrogen oxides by 150,000 tons. All in all, these results would be the equivalent to the afforestation of 66,000 hectares of land every year.