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Chinese authorities say there are now 24 nuclear power units under construction in China, more than in any other country in the world. While working on developing this energy source, Beijing has also been sparing no effort in furthering its nuclear safety. Let's get a closer look at the production process at one of the country's nuclear fuel plant.

This nuclear fuel plant's annual production can provide as much energy as 40 million tons of coal. And this uranium dioxide powder, enriched with 3.7 percent uranium, is the source of that enormous energy.

"We compacted the uranium dioxide powder into bars, then sintered it to increase its density. At last we filed it into standard size. That's how a UO2 pellet, which will later be placed into fuel pods, came into being," said Wang Jun, deputy chief engineer of China North Nuclear Fuel Co. Ltd.

This small piece of nuclear fuel weighs only 7 grams. But the energy it could release is equivalent to A TON of standard coal. And when tens of thousands of these small pieces join together, huge amounts of electricity power could be generated

"This is our product. There are 264 fuel pods in one opponent like this, and when it is functioning in a reactor, it is equal to 90 thousand tons of coal. This is of great significance to energy conservation and emission reduction," Wang said.

The plant now has automated many of its working processes, which improved production quality, and more importantly, made it safer.

Meanwhile, strict control and management of the materials have also been imposed.

About two weeks ago, China and the US opened the world's largest nuclear safety centre in Beijing, showing both countries' commitment to furthering nuclear safety.

With President Xi scheduled to meet his US counterpart Barack Obama in Washington this week, more cooperation on nuclear security between the world's two greatest powers is expected.