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| Nuclear industry blooms in Vietnam |
| 29-JUN-2010 Intellasia | Vietnam Investment Review |
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| 29 Jun, 2010 - 7:00:00 AM |
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The door has been opened for more foreign firms to enter Vietnam's infant nuclear power industry. Opportunities for foreign businesses to take part in nuclear power initiatives in Vietnam are set to be multiplied with the government announcing a series of nuclear power plants to be built up to 2030.
Under Decision 906/QD-TTg signed last week by prime minister Nguyen Tan Dung regarding nuclear power development till 2030, Vietnam will build 14 nuclear power reactors with total capacity of around 15,000-16,000 megawatts, accounting for 10 percent of the country's total electricity capacity. The plants will be built at eight locations in central Ninh Thuan, Binh Dinh, Phu Yen, Quang N gai and Ha Tinh provinces.
The move means more business opportunities are being offered to foreign companies such as China's Dongfang Electric Corporation and Guangdong Nuclear Power Group, France's Areva,
Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Toshiba Corporation and the United States' Westinghouse Electric Company. Foreign partners are allowed to be involved in up to 60-70 percent of a nuclear power project's total construction value.
Vuong Huu Tan, head of Vietnam Atomic Energy Commission, said those foreign companies wanted to provide their advanced technologies to land big contracts after failing to be a contractor for Vietnam's first nuclear power plant in Ninh Thuan province.
"All nuclear power plants must be built by international companies because domestic companies do not have enough experience and technology," said Tan.
Vietnam has started work on its first nuclear power plant in Ninh Thuan which will consist of two 1,000 megawatt reactors. State-owned Electricity of Vietnam last month announced that it was negotiating with a Russian company to build the plant.
Construction of the first plant could be started in 2015 and the second plant in 2021. The first plant is expected to be up and running in 2020.
Francois Nguyen, International Energy Agency's (IEA) senior policy advisor, told the Vietnam Energy Summit in HCM City last week that "nuclear power will become a promising source for generating electricity in developing countries like Vietnam following the world's pressure on energy-related carbon dioxide abatement and desire for renewable and green energy."
He said: "Traditional coal-fired and combined cycle gas turbine generation power is the cheapest sources. However, nuclear power plant development is the most competitive solution regarding financing cost as an environment friendly and proven technology."
Diversifying electricity generation sources would be key to Vietnam's energy security with a mix of coal, gas, hydro and nuclear power, Nguyen stressed, adding that the diversification would help the country reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels.
The National Assembly last year approved the Nuclear Power Law, providing a framework for a nuclear regulatory body and technical support organisations such as nuclear safety and environmental radioactivity monitoring centres.
The country also signed a memorandum of understanding with the US to nurture nuclear plant human resources, upgrade infrastructure, manage radioactive waste, guarantee nuclear security and build light-water nuclear reactors.
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