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| Fig. 1: Ninh Thuận Model Display. (Source: Wikimedia Commons) |
Although Vietnam initially dabbled with nuclear energy plans throughout the mid to late 20th century that were later canceled, Vietnam's more serious efforts to bring about nuclear energy are relatively recent, starting with efforts in 1995 to bring about nuclear power for peaceful purposes and firm proposals surfacing around 2006. [1] However, in November 2016, Vietnam opted out of nuclear energy, as nuclear energy was not economically viable because of cheaper alternatives. [2]
In 2009, Vietnam's national assembly approved a project that would build two nuclear power plants with a capacity of 2GW each in the province of Ninh Thuận. In 2006, the Vietnamese government announced plans for a 2 gigawatt (GW) nuclear power plant to be only by 2020; by 2007, these plans were approved along with plans for a target capacity of 8 GW by 2025. [1] By 2010, Vietnam, with the help of Japan and Russia's nuclear industries, planned to have 13 nuclear reactors at eight separate plants that would supply about 10% of the country's electricity generation with a combined capacity of 15 GW by the year 2030. [1] By 2012, as more developed plans began to take form, utilities companies from Japan and Russia as well as South Korea, China, France, and the US began to express interest in building reactors in Vietnam. [1] In 2014, the ground breaking ceremony took place at the Russian Ninh Thuận site (as depicted in Fig. 1), however the Vietnamese government delayed the project by four years because of continuing negotiations on technology and financing. [1] The following year, plans were pushed back another four years. [1]
In November 2016, the investment required for the projects had doubled since 2009 from 200 trillion đồng ($9 billion) to 400 trillion đồng ($18 billion). [2] The hike in price along with a decrease in Vietnam's energy demands caused Vietnam's National Assembly to vote to abandon plans to build two multi-billion dollar nuclear with Russia and Japan. [2] Additionally, the vote to abandon the plants was influenced by safety concerns; in 2014, concerns were raised over potential tsunami risks and an incomplete legislative framework for safety regulation. [1]
Throughout Southeast Asia, nuclear energy is met with hesitation; countries like the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Myanmar have either abandoned plans to develop nuclear energy or made significant pauses in their nuclear energy development. [3] In Southeast Asia, nuclear development is impeded by anti-nuclear sentiment, continuing safety concerns, and lack of consistent political willingness from government bodies. [3] Despite nuclear energy being an attractive option in the fight against climate change, something that affects Southeast Asia very heavily, it is unlikely that these qualms with nuclear energy will be resolved anytime soon. [3]
© Alex Pham. The author warrants that the work is the author's own and that Stanford University provided no input other than typesetting and referencing guidelines. The author grants permission to copy, distribute and display this work in unaltered form, with attribution to the author, for noncommercial purposes only. All other rights, including commercial rights, are reserved to the author.
[1] "Vietnam National Report on Compliance to Convention on Nuclear Safety," Government of Vietnam, August 2016
[2] M. Nguyen and H. B. Minh, "Vietnam Abandons Plan For First Nuclear Power Plants," Reuters, 22 Nov 16.
[3] V. Nguyen, "Nuclear Energy in Southeast Asia: A Bridge Too Far?," The Diplomat, 9 Nov 16.
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