Vietnam interested in Belarus' experience in building nuclear power plant

Vietnam would like to study Belarus' experience in building a nuclear power plant, Head of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry (Gosatomnadzor) Olga Lugovskaya told BelTA during the visit of the Belarusian delegation to Hanoi, Vietnam.

The Gosatomnadzor delegation met with representatives of the Vietnam Agency for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (VARANS). The meeting was held during the visit of Belarus' Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko to Vietnam.

“A memorandum on interaction and exchange of information in the field of nuclear and radiation safety was signed. The nuclear safety watchdog in the Republic of Belarus is Gosatomnadzor, and in Vietnam it is the Vietnam Agency for Radiation and Nuclear Safety. A few years ago Vietnam announced plans to build a nuclear power plant, while Belarus is already operating one. Therefore, Vietnam is interested in communication and information exchange in this area. The issues that are of interest to Vietnamese partners include organizational matters, licensing supervision, drafting of regulatory documents, personnel training,” said Olga Lugovskaya.

There is a research reactor in Vietnam, which is of interest to Belarus. “There are a lot of areas where the two countries can exchange best practices. Belarus and Vietnam will interact in industries related to the use of nuclear energy and sources of ionizing radiation. It has a lot to do with safety, which is vital for us. Therefore, interaction in this sphere is always very open,” explained the Gosatomnadzor head.

There are multiple forms of interaction between Belarus and Vietnam in this area. “They include information exchange, participation in themed events in the two countries. Of course, this will also involve real-life interaction: we will exchange visits if necessary. Before issuing an operation license for the second unit of the Belarusian nuclear power plant, we held public hearings. Our Vietnamese partners joined us via videoconference and could see everything that we were doing. It will be interesting for us to follow the construction of their nuclear power plant if the decision on construction is made. A newcomer country would greatly benefit from expertise and knowledge of experienced colleagues, and we can already say that Belarus has the necessary experience, since we have walked this path, built a nuclear power plant and regulated the process at all stages,” concluded Olga Lugovskaya.