06:06 AM EDT, 05/07/2024 (MT Newswires) -- China added more than 34 gigawatts (GW) of nuclear power capacity in the last decade as it continues its rapid growth in the sector as part of a long-term strategy implemented in 2011, the US Energy Information Administration reported on Monday.

As of April, the country had 55 operating nuclear reactors with a total net capacity of more than 53 GW. An additional 23 reactors are under construction that will add roughly 24 GW to the country's existing nuclear power capacity over the next decade, the EIA said.

The U.S., which has the largest nuclear fleet at 94 reactors, took nearly 40 years to add the same nuclear power capacity as China added in 10 years, the agency noted.

China's strategy involves developing more nuclear power to meet electricity demand and address environmental concerns. Despite rapid capacity growth in 2022, nuclear power made up only about 5% of China's cumulative power generation that year, compared with about 18% in the US, the EIA said.

Coal remains China's largest electricity generation source. As a result, more carbon dioxide has been emitted in China than in any other country since 2006.