New nuclear development council for Vietnam
Vietnam is to set up a new National Council for Atomic Energy Development, tasked with identifying strategies and priorities for the development of nuclear energy in the country.
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung's announcement of the decision to set up the council was reported by Vietnam's official government press agency. Headed by Vietnam's science and technology minister, the council will advise the government on "orientations and strategies," identify priority areas for each development stage, and draw up key policies on nuclear energy development and application.
It will also coordinate ministries, agencies, governmental bodies and localities in developing nuclear energy and "realizing" nuclear power programs. The council will also take on a role in international nuclear cooperation activities with organizations and individual countries.
Vietnam's plans for nuclear power are well advanced. The country's Atomic Energy Law came into force in 2009 and intergovernmental agreements in place with Russia and Japan allow for the construction of its first two nuclear power plants, both in Ninh Thuan province. Costruction work has yet to begin, although the first Russian-designed unit at Ninh Thuan I is pencilled in to begin operation by the end of 2020.
Researched and written
by World Nuclear News
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