Korea is one step closer to participating in Vietnam’s nuclear power construction project. According to the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, Korea has concluded an agreement with Vietnam to conduct a preliminary feasibility study on building a Korean-developed nuclear power plant in the Southeast Asian country.
The deal was agreed between President Lee Myung-bak and Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on Wednesday following the Nuclear Security Summit held in Seoul. According to the ministry, the agreement means Korea has secured the status of preferred negotiator for Vietnam’s plan to build its fifth and sixth reactors.
Vietnam plans to build 10 nuclear reactors, each with a capacity of 1 gigawatt. Russia won the order for the first two reactors in 2009 while Japan was awarded the third and fourth plants the following year.
The preliminary feasibility study is expected to start next month at the earliest and will take about a year to conclude. If the study is approved by the Vietnamese parliament, an official deal will be signed for construction by 2020 of two Korean-developed APR-1400 reactors, which would cost $10 billion.
If Korea wins additional deals to provide support for the operation of the reactors, the total contract sum could reach $20 billion. Furthermore, the latest agreement has brightened the prospect of Korea winning the orders for the remaining four reactors.
If Korea is chosen for the Vietnamese project, it would mark its second major nuclear technology export deal. In 2009, Korea signed an $18.6 billion contract with the United Arab Emirates to build four APR-1400 reactors there.
After the mega deal with the UAE, however, Korea has failed to clinch additional orders. One reason was the Fukushima disaster last March, which led some countries to cancel or delay their plans to go nuclear.
Against this backdrop, if Korea wins the Vietnamese order, it will inject fresh vigor into Korea’s nuclear industry. It will be another testament to Korea’s advanced and reliable nuclear technology. It could also provide momentum to the ongoing negotiations with Turkey.
Despite the increased recognition abroad of Korea’s nuclear technology, opposition to nuclear power is growing domestically. But critics should realize that nuclear energy is the best option available to meet growing demand for electricity.
According to an IAEA estimate released last September, the number of nuclear power plants to be built by 2030 around the world ranges between 90 and 350. This means the size of the global nuclear plant market will reach between $15.2 billion and $57.7 billion a year through 2030. Korea should not miss out.
