China has unveiled plans for a massive nuclear floating island, which will be fueled by molten salt reactors and will serve as a container transfer terminal, energy hub, and charging station for vessels.

Jiangnan Shipyard showcased the new project during the Posidonia International Shipping Exhibition in Athens, Greece, on Tuesday, June 3. The Shanghai-based company is one of China’s largest and most important shipbuilding facilities.

A subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), the firm described the initiative as a new model for zero-emission ocean logistics, that merges cargo transport, energy production, and fuel generation on a single offshore platform.

The floating complex would be powered by advanced molten salt reactors that use liquefied salt as both fuel and coolant. Molten salt reactors can store large amounts of thermal energy. They do not rely on water for cooling.

A floating energy hub

The shipbuilding company stressed that the platform would function as the “zero-carbon heart” of a broader maritime transport network. Apart from the reactor, it would integrate solar panels, wind turbines, hydrogen production systems, green-fuel synthesis units, as well as electricity supply infrastructure.

In addition to handling cargo transfers, the multipurpose offshore facility would produce electricity and low-carbon marine fuels, including ammonia. The clean energy produced on board could be used to power terminal operations, charge electric feeder vessels, and supply fuel for ships along major trade routes.

Jiangnan Shipyard announced it expects the hub to “become a new ecosystem for zero-emission ocean container logistics” and provide a “groundbreaking solution for the global shipping industry’s carbon neutral transformation.”

The island would support long-distance transoceanic shipping routes, near-shore networks, and cargo transshipment operations. Its modular design could further allow similar facilities to be deployed at ports and shipping corridors around the world.

Fueled by molten salt

According to the company, one of the project’s greatest advantages is the molten salt reactor (MSR) technology. In contrast to traditional reactors, MRS operate at a near-atmospheric pressure. It reduces the risk of high-pressure steam explosions or leaks, which can disperse radioactive materials.

“Molten salt reactors inherently avoid the risk of the core melting, and have inherent safety and non-proliferation characteristics,” the company said. “When the molten salt coolant comes into contact with environmental temperatures, it can rapidly solidify, greatly reducing the risk of accident-related leakage.”

The novel concept builds on China’s wider strategy to advance molten salt reactor technology. Chinese researchers have been actively testing thorium-based molten salt reactors, which use thorium as a fuel source instead of conventional uranium. They are seen as a highly promising alternative to uranium reactors.

Discovered in 1828 and named after Thor, the Norse god of thunder, thorium is a weakly radioactive actinide metal. It is found in trace amounts in most rocks, soils, and sands. It is three to four times more abundant in Earth’s crust than uranium. In 2025, scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) made the world’s first thorium-to-uranium nuclear fuel conversion in a molten salt reactor.

The floating island proposal follows the firm’s earlier announcement of a nuclear-powered cargo vessel under development. It is expected to use a thorium-based molten salt reactor and carry up to 25,000 shipping containers.