DiscoverDecoupleHow China Builds Reactors So Fast
How China Builds Reactors So Fast

How China Builds Reactors So Fast

Update: 2025-10-28
Share

Description

This week I sit back down with François Morin in his third appearance on the show. François is the World Nuclear Association’s point person on China. He works and travels inside China, speaks fluent Mandarin, and spends time at the conventional and advanced reactor sites that the rest of us argue about on Twitter. 

We cover how quickly China is really building nuclear power compared to the heyday of the French Mesmer plan, how that compares to Chinese coal and gas deployment, why Chinese nuclear is still mostly coastal, and the use case, build times and performance of the so-called “advanced reactors” that China is operating while Western startups are still in the powerpoint phase pitching to investors.

Watch the full conversation on YouTube.

Listen to Decouple on:

• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6PNr3ml8nEQotWWavE9kQz 

• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decouple/id1516526694?uo=4 

• Overcast: https://overcast.fm/itunes1516526694/decouple 

• Pocket Casts: https://pca.st/ehbfrn44 

• RSS: https://anchor.fm/s/23775178/podcast/rss 

Website: https://www.decouple.media


Comments 
In Channel
Where Is Nature Going?

Where Is Nature Going?

2025-10-1454:59

Handling the Heat

Handling the Heat

2025-10-0601:10:08

Nuclear Meme Stocks

Nuclear Meme Stocks

2025-09-3001:06:42

To Bomb or Not to Bomb

To Bomb or Not to Bomb

2025-09-1501:17:50

Rare Earth Emergency

Rare Earth Emergency

2025-09-0801:06:30

Battery Power

Battery Power

2025-09-0101:07:14

The Export Expert

The Export Expert

2025-08-1801:21:57

Sun, Silicon, and Xinjiang

Sun, Silicon, and Xinjiang

2025-07-0801:11:41

Small Reactor, Big Price

Small Reactor, Big Price

2025-07-0201:40:15

Is Wright's Law Wrong?

Is Wright's Law Wrong?

2025-06-2501:04:24

Tim Cook, Nation-Builder

Tim Cook, Nation-Builder

2025-06-0301:01:02

No Risk, All Reward

No Risk, All Reward

2025-05-2001:09:38

Hellbrise

Hellbrise

2025-05-1301:05:37

loading
00:00
00:00
x

0.5x

0.8x

1.0x

1.25x

1.5x

2.0x

3.0x

Sleep Timer

Off

End of Episode

5 Minutes

10 Minutes

15 Minutes

30 Minutes

45 Minutes

60 Minutes

120 Minutes

How China Builds Reactors So Fast

How China Builds Reactors So Fast

Dr. Chris Keefer