China's first commercial nuclear heating project has begun operating at the Haiyang nuclear power plant in Shandong province. Two AP1000 nuclear units will initially provide heating to 700,000 square meters of housing.

This use of nuclear energy heating will avoid the use of 23,200 tonnes of coal annually, cutting emissions of soot by 222 tonnes, of sulfur dioxide by 382 tonnes, of nitrogen oxide by 362 tonnes and of carbon dioxide by 60,000 tonnes.

The Haiyang Nuclear Energy Heating Project is expected to provide heating to the entire Haiyang city by 2021. According to SDNPC, with slight modifications, Haiyang units 1 and 2 could have the capacity to provide heating to 30 million square meters. With the completion and commissioning of subsequent units at Haiyang, the plant could eventually provide heating to more than 200 million square meters of housing within a 100-kilometer radius, avoiding the use of about 6.62 million tonnes of coal. Up to six CAP1000 units are planned for the Haiyang plant.