816 Military Nuclear Plant

Useful Information

Location:	At Baitao, Fuling district
Open:	Only doemstic visitors. [2010]
Fee:	yes. [2010]
Classification:
Light:	Incandescent Electric Light System
Dimension:	L=20,000 m, Ar=104,000m².
Guided tours:
Photography:
Accessibility:
Bibliography:
Address:	816 Military Nuclear Plant, Tel: +86-, Fax: +86-,
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

1966	begin of construction.
1984	facility closed.
APR-2002	declassified.
OCT-2010	opened to the public.

Description

816 Military Nuclear Plant is a huge bunker built during the cold war. The construction began in 1966, authorized by the Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai, and for 17 years 60,000 soldiers built an underground bunker system which is said to be one of the biggest on the world. The construction site, like all big constructions, was dangerous, and so hundreds of soldiers died during the works.

The tunnels have a length of 20 km and an area of one square kilometer. The biggest chamber is the underground nucear power plant, which is an 80 m high underground dome as big as a soccer stadium. The bunker system was built to survive direct hits with atomic bombs and earthquakes of magnitude 8.0.

The construction was cancelled in 1984 by the Central Military Commission, a concession to international demilitarization attemts, and soon after, with the end of the cold war it became finally obsolete. It took some time until it was declassified by the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense in 2002, and this made the recent opening to the public possible. However, as it is an military installation there are serious restrictions. At the moment only the underground power plant is accessible, and only to domestic visitors with the necessary certificates! However, the opening of further parts of the huge bunker system and the opening to foreign tourists are intended.

The site is intended as an educational site, concentrating on the topics national defense and nuclear science. Beneath the huge cavern there are tunnels, old-style computers and industrial process and control equipment. And of course the discarded installations of a nuclear power plant. It also allows the locals a first glimpse behind the scenes of the so far extremely restrictive military. China plans to open more such plants in the future, to increase tourism.