Moscow: Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom is poised to engage in the construction of a nuclear power plant in Vietnam, as announced by the Russian Foreign Ministry. Director of the Third Asian Department, Lyudmila Vorobyova, revealed this development during an interview with RIA Novosti, emphasizing Russia’s commitment to continuing its collaboration with Myanmar.

According to Namibia Press Agency, Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev stated in mid-January that Russia has initiated efforts to update agreements with Vietnam regarding the construction of a new nuclear power facility. The proposed plant will feature two modern and safe power units. While Russia and Vietnam initially reached an agreement in 2010, the Vietnamese authorities decided to halt the project in 2016. However, there has been a renewed interest from Vietnam to revive the project.

Vorobyova further mentioned that ASEAN countries have shown interest in nuclear energy development. In recent years, Rosatom has been actively assisting Myanmar in building its national nuclear infrastructure. This includes training specialized personnel and sharing expertise in energy and non-energy nuclear applications, as well as nuclear medicine.

A significant milestone was achieved on March 4 with the signing of an intergovernmental agreement during the state visit of Myanmar’s leadership to Russia. This agreement outlines the principles of cooperation for constructing a small modular reactor nuclear power plant in Myanmar. Rosatom plans to develop a plant with an initial capacity of 110 megawatts, which can be expanded to 330 megawatts, marking a significant step forward in nuclear collaboration between the two nations.