📋 Tender Overview
Developing nuclear power is not just about building a power plant, but the process of creating an entire ecosystem including institutions, regulations, human resources, research facilities, universities and businesses capable of participating in the value chain. For Vietnam, the goal is not only to operate the first nuclear power units, but also to gradually form a high-tech industry and improve national science and technology capacity. Download Overview of Da Lat Nuclear Research Institute. Photo: Nuclear Research Institute Owning does not mean doing everything yourself When aiming to master nuclear power technology, one of the questions of concern is whether Vietnam can design, manufacture and build a nuclear power plant completely by itself. According to experts, this is not the approach that countries that have successfully developed nuclear power choose. Even countries with the worlds leading nuclear industry development are still deeply involved in the international cooperation network, from technology design, fuel supply, equipment manufacturing, technical services to building safety standards and technology evaluation. Therefore, mastering nuclear power does not mean self-producing all components of a plant, but having enough capacity to choose appropriate technology, receive and master the transfer process, control quality, operate safely and gradually develop endogenous capacity. According to Director of the Vietnam Atomic Energy Institute Tran Chi Thanh, nuclear power is The industry has a very long life cycle, requiring continuous accumulation of knowledge, experience and a team of experts. Therefore, the ability to master technology needs to be built step by step, instead of pursuing the goal of localization at all costs. Do not rush with new technology An important issue in nuclear power development is technology selection. In the context that many countries are interested in small modular reactors (SMR), Vietnam also needs to research and evaluate this trend. However, experts believe that the choice of technology must be based on comprehensive criteria, not just on new or modern factors. SMR is being researched and developed by many countries, but some designs are still in the process of being completed, demonstrated or prepared for deployment, and do not have much experience in large-scale commercial operation. According to Dr. Tran Chi Thanh, in addition to safety design requirements, SMRs also need to be evaluated in many aspects such as location selection, economic efficiency, fuel supply, as well as post-use fuel management solutions. Meanwhile, generation III+ reactor technologies now have a higher level of maturity, have been deployed in many countries and have a lot of practical operating experience. Therefore, choosing nuclear power technology needs to be based on a balance between safety and efficiency requirements. economic efficiency, deployment ability, technology adoption capacity and actual conditions of Vietnam. Download Engineers working at Da Lat Research Reactor Independent regulation is the foundation to ensure safety. If technology is considered the heart of a nuclear power plant, the nuclear regulatory system is the fence to ensure that all activities are carried out according to strict safety requirements. International experience shows that countries that develop sustainable nuclear power have built regulatory agencies with sufficient professional capacity and independence in operations. This is the mechanism. The agency performs the functions of appraising, licensing and supervising the entire project implementation process according to international safety standards, including recommendations and guidelines of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The role of the regulatory agency is not to promote project progress, but to ensure that all decisions related to nuclear power put safety first. For a nuclear power plant to be licensed to operate, the project must go through a strict evaluation process, from inspection to inspection. site inspection, geological, meteorological, hydrological conditions, safety analysis reports, environmental impact assessments to inspection and testing of technical systems. This process can take many years, but is a prerequisite to ensure the plant operates safely throughout its life cycle. Download Inside the reactor cover of unit 7 at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Kashiwazaki, Niigata Prefecture (Japan) August 6, 2024 - Photo: AFP Localization must be linked to substantive capacity Nuclear power development also opens up opportunities for domestic enterprises to participate more deeply in the supply chain of the high-tech industry. According to experts, Vietnam can gradually participate in these Suitable fields such as mechanical engineering, steel structures, construction, automation, materials, inspection, maintenance and provision of technical services. However, localization in the nuclear industry cannot be set as a simple percentage target, but must be associated with the ability to meet very strict quality and safety standards. Only when domestic enterprises are capable of meeting international requirements, participation in the lower industry value chainNuclear power is truly sustainable, and at the same time creates motivation to improve national industrial capacity. Nuclear power is not just a story of building an additional source of electricity for the national energy system. It is the process of building national capacity in a special technology field, where every decision today will impact many generations in the future. To master nuclear power, Vietnam needs to build a synchronous ecosystem, in which state management agencies complete policies, regulatory agencies ensure safety supervision, research institutes develop and absorb technology, universities train human resources, businesses participate in the supply chain, and nuclear power plants are a convergence place. and operate
