ASEAN Beat | Economy | Southeast Asia

Vietnam, Russia Sign Agreement on Nuclear Power Plant Construction

The agreement was one of several energy-related deals that were signed on the first day of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s official visit to Moscow.

Vietnam has signed a number of energy-related agreements with Russia, including one on the construction of a nuclear power ​plant in the country’s south, as the country scrambles to address energy shortages caused by the conflict in the Middle East.

The agreements were signed in Moscow yesterday by Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his Russian counterpart, Mikhail Mishustin, on the first day of Chinh’s three-day visit to Russia.

According to the Moscow Times, one of these agreements laid out the legal framework for the construction of two nuclear power reactors by the Russian state nuclear energy corporation Rosatom at Vietnam’s proposed Ninh Thuan 1 nuclear power plant. Rosatom did not say how much the project would cost, but said that the two reactors will have a total output of 2,400 MW. Rosatom head Alexey Likhachev said that the agreement would be the “foundation for a long-term industrial partnership, which will strengthen Vietnam’s energy independence and open up new opportunities for economic growth,” the Times added.

Chinh’s trip takes place against the backdrop of the global oil supply crisis caused by the closure of the current war in the Persian Gulf, which has led to a spike in fuel prices in Vietnam. Petrol prices have risen by around 50 percent and diesel prices by about 70 percent in the country since the start of the conflict, which has choked off oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz.

In a statement on Saturday, ahead of Chinh’s departure, Vietnam’s government said that Chinh’s visit would focus on deepening ties with Russia, particularly in terms of energy cooperation.

“During this visit, a series of important agreements related to nuclear power plant projects, as well as cooperation in energy and oil and gas will be signed,” the statement said. “Cooperation in oil and gas energy will be reinforced in all fields of trade, exploration, extraction, and human resource training,” it added.

Russia and Vietnam........

© The Diplomat