Thorium Molten Salt Reactor TMSR-500 Approved by China's Nuclear Safety Authority: Gen-IV Nuclear Enters Commercial Stage

Thorium Molten Salt Reactor TMSR-500 Approved by China's Nuclear Safety Authority: Gen-IV Nuclear Enters Commercial Stage

China's National Nuclear Safety Authority formally approved the construction permit for the thorium molten salt reactor TMSR-500 on December 25. This 500MW Generation IV nuclear reactor will be built in Wuwei, Gansu Province, with grid connection planned for 2031. It is the first commercially approved thorium molten salt reactor project globally.

TMSR-500's technical route draws on 15 years of research by the CAS Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics. Unlike traditional pressurized water reactors using solid uranium fuel rods, TMSR-500 dissolves nuclear fuel in high-temperature liquid fluoride salt, with the flowing fuel itself serving as the coolant.

This design offers three key advantages. First, inherent safety: liquid fuel naturally expands when temperature rises, reducing reaction rates. Even with total control system failure, the reactor automatically shuts down. Second, fuel utilization: thorium reserves are approximately 4x uranium, and the thorium-uranium breeding cycle improves fuel utilization 100x over traditional designs. Third, nuclear waste: thorium fuel cycle produces only 1% of the long-lived radioactive waste of traditional uranium reactors.

Total investment is approximately 28 billion yuan with a 5-year construction period. Annual output of approximately 4 billion kWh can serve 1.2 million households with zero carbon emissions. However, the estimated levelized cost of 0.45 yuan/kWh exceeds the 0.3 yuan of large pressurized water reactors.