Nuclear energy law awaits May approval

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A law on nuclear energy is expected to be approved by the National Assembly this
month, paving the way for the country’s first nuclear power plant.

An investment report and procedures to build the plant in southern Ninh Thuan
province will be completed and given the all clear by the NA next year, deputy
director of the Electricity of Vietnam (EVN), Nguyen Manh Hung said.

The plant will have four turbines with a combined capacity of 4,000 MW worth US
$6 billion.

If the law was approved, the country would be able to start taking measures to
ensure nuclear security, head of the Vietnam Atomic Energy Commission, Vuong Huu
Tan said.

As planned, construction of the first plant will kick off by 2015, the first
turbine would come into operation by 2020 and the plant would be fully
operational five years later.

Though Vietnam faces a serious electricity shortage, the country can not speed
up the project because it needs time to prepare sufficient facilities, human
resources, technology and legal documents for the plant, Tan said.

Another hurdle is that Vietnam is lack of human resources in the nuclear sector
because for many years, the country had not focused training on this field.

Ninh Thuan province was picked for the projec"