YICHANG -- China has planned to build its first nuclear power plant in the inland areas in central China's Hunan Province.

China National Nuclear Corporation, together with China Three Gorges Project Corporation, China Resources Co. Ltd and Hunan Xiangtou Holdings Group Co. Ltd, inked an agreement Wednesday to build a joint-venture, Hunan Taohua River Nuclear Power Co. Ltd, to operate the project.

The plant will be located in Lishanhe Town, Taojiang County of Yiyang City. It has a planned installation capacity of four million kilowatts, half of which will be completed in the first phase of the project.

The plant is expected to the first nuclear power plant built in China's inland areas.

China's two major nuclear plants, Daya Bay Nuclear Power Plant and Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant, are both situated in the coastal areas.

According to a state nuclear power development plan adopted by the State Council in 2006, China will increase its combined nuclear power capacity to 40,000 megawatts by 2020, a plan that will require about two 1,000 megawatt nuclear power plants to be built each year for the next 15 years.

The second phase of Qinshan was completed in the first half of 2006, which has an installation capacity of 600,000 kilowatts.

China has six nuclear power plants with 11 reactors, all located along its economically thriving east and southeast coasts.

Companies have announced plans to build more plants in the provinces of southeast Fujian, eastern Shandong and central Hunan.