核电站

• Pinyin: hé diàn zhàn
• Hanzi breakdown: 核 = 木 + 亥 (nuclear/core); 电 = 雨 simplified (electricity/lightning); 站 = 立 (stand) + 占 (occupy/station)

Meaning

Nuclear power station; nuclear power plant. A facility that generates electricity using the heat produced by nuclear fission reactions.

China has one of the world's largest and fastest-growing nuclear power programmes, with dozens of reactors in operation and under construction, primarily along coastal provinces. Nuclear power is a key component of China's strategy to reduce carbon emissions and coal dependency. The term appears frequently in energy policy discussions, environmental debates, and engineering contexts.

Examples

1. 这座核电站自投入运营以来，年均发电量超过三百亿千瓦时，有效缓解了区域电力供应紧张的局面。 Since it began operating, this nuclear power plant has generated more than 30 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity a year on average, effectively easing regional power shortages.
2. 为确保核电站的安全运营，监管部门每年都会组织多次全面检查和应急演练。 To ensure the safe operation of the nuclear power plant, regulators conduct multiple comprehensive inspections and emergency drills every year.
3. 建设新一代核电站需要克服大量技术难题，同时还须妥善处理核废料的长期储存问题。 Building a new generation of nuclear power plants requires overcoming many technical challenges, and it also requires properly addressing the long-term storage of nuclear waste.

Usage Guide

Context: energy, engineering, environment, policy

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 政府计划在未来十年内新建十座核电站，以满足日益增长的清洁能源需求。(The government plans to build ten new nuclear power stations over the next decade to meet the growing demand for clean energy.)
• 核电站的选址需要综合考虑地质条件、水源供应、人口分布以及应急疏散方案等多重因素。(The siting of a nuclear power plant requires a comprehensive assessment of geological conditions, water supply, population distribution, and emergency evacuation plans.)

Don't Say

• 核电站 for a nuclear research reactor — use 核反应堆 or 研究堆; 核电站 specifically denotes a power-generating facility, not an experimental or research reactor

Origin & History

核 (nuclear) + 电 (electricity) + 站 (station; facility)

Cultural Context

Era: Modern era

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal