Ensuring national energy security and stable electricity supply is an urgent requirement.

Ensuring national energy security and providing sufficient and stable electricity is an urgent requirement for development. Nuclear power is considered a stable source of electricity, playing an important role in ensuring energy security and meeting the requirements of energy transition towards clean, environmentally friendly, low-emissions.

Prime Minister chairs 3rd meeting of Steering Committee for construction of nuclear power plant

On the afternoon of October 22, 2025, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh , Head of the Steering Committee for the construction of nuclear power plants, chaired the third meeting of the Steering Committee. Attending the meeting were Mr. Bui Thanh Son, Deputy Prime Minister, Deputy Head of the Steering Committee; leaders of ministries, branches, localities, and members of the Steering Committee.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chairs the third meeting of the Steering Committee for the construction of nuclear power plants - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac

In his opening speech, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh stated that ensuring national energy security and providing stable electricity supply are urgent requirements for development. Practice shows that when GDP grows by 1 percentage point, electricity consumption increases by 1.5-2 times. Currently, the average electricity consumption capacity of the whole country is 54,500 MW, with an annual growth rate of about 6,500 to 8,200 MW.

Along with that, with the policy of attracting investment, developing high-tech industries, chip manufacturing, digital transformation, construction, development of data centers, green transformation, increasing the use of electric vehicles and building high-speed railway systems and inner-city railways, the demand for electricity will increase sharply.

Nuclear power is considered a stable source of electricity, playing an important role in ensuring energy security and meeting the requirements of energy transition towards clean, environmentally friendly, low-emissions.

The Prime Minister said that the Central Executive Committee has issued a Resolution agreeing on the policy of restarting the Ninh Thuan Nuclear Power Project and continuing to study the Nuclear Power Program in Vietnam; the Politburo issued Resolution No. 70 dated August 20, 2025 on ensuring national energy security until 2030, with a vision to 2045, continuing to advocate for the urgent implementation of nuclear power projects with appropriate partners, ensuring the highest interests of Vietnam, taking into account previous agreements, and putting them into operation in the 2035-2045 period.

The Prime Minister has made decisions to establish a Steering Committee for the construction of nuclear power plants, directing the resolution of important inter-sectoral issues in the process of implementing the National Assembly's Resolution on continuing to implement the investment policy for the Ninh Thuan nuclear power project.

The Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Industry and Trade and other agencies to report on the development and promulgation of mechanisms and policies to institutionalize the Party's policies, perfect the legal basis, and remove difficulties and obstacles in laws; the implementation of assigned tasks after the previous meeting, the results achieved, the unfinished work, clearly indicating the difficulties, causes, and responsibilities of which agencies, and proposing the following tasks and solutions.

The Prime Minister emphasized the spirit of "only discussing, not retreating", high determination, great effort, drastic action, completing each task thoroughly, completing each task properly, assigning "6 clear" tasks: clear people, clear work, clear responsibility, clear time, clear results, clear authority; promoting the sense of responsibility of the Steering Committee members and strengthening inspection, urging and supervision.

The Prime Minister also noted that agencies urgently carry out assigned tasks to implement the direction of General Secretary To Lam during a working session at the Vietnam Atomic Energy Institute last September.

Negotiations to build nuclear power plants "harmonized benefits, shared risks"

Faced with the requirements of the new development period, at the end of 2024, the Party Central Committee and the National Assembly reviewed and agreed on the policy of restarting the Ninh Thuan Nuclear Power Project (now in Khanh Hoa province). Immediately after that, the Prime Minister issued decisions to establish and perfect the Steering Committee for the construction of the nuclear power plant.

At the meeting, delegates reported and discussed the situation of building and submitting for promulgation mechanisms and policies to institutionalize the Party's policies, perfect the legal basis, remove difficulties and obstacles in laws; the situation of implementing assigned tasks after the previous meeting, achieved results, unfinished work, clearly pointing out the difficulties, causes, responsibilities of which agencies and proposing the following tasks and solutions.

According to reports and opinions at the meeting, implementing the conclusions of the second session of the Steering Committee, ministries, agencies and project investors have proactively and actively implemented assigned tasks. The agencies have also actively exchanged and negotiated with foreign partners.

After submitting to the National Assembly Resolution No. 189 dated February 19, 2025 on a number of special mechanisms and policies for investment in the construction of the Ninh Thuan nuclear power project, the Government issued a plan to implement Resolution No. 189 of the National Assembly.

The Prime Minister has issued a document assigning Vietnam Electricity (EVN) to be the investor of nuclear power project 1, the National Energy Industry Group (Petrovietnam) to be the investor of nuclear power project 2; the People's Committee of Ninh Thuan province (now Khanh Hoa province) to implement the resettlement and site clearance component projects. Nuclear power projects have been added to the Power Plan VIII.

The Prime Minister directed to promote negotiations and complete agreements with partners according to the principles of harmonious benefits, shared risks, cutting cumbersome procedures, and building appropriate standards and regulations - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac

The Ministry of Science and Technology has completed the Atomic Energy Law for the Government to submit to the National Assembly for promulgation and is currently drafting decrees and circulars to guide its implementation. The Ministry of Education and Training has submitted to the Prime Minister for approval the Project on training and fostering human resources for nuclear power development until 2035.

The Ministry of Finance is drafting a Government Resolution to separate the resettlement and site clearance issues of nuclear power plant projects into independent projects.

Concluding the meeting, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh acknowledged and commended the ministries, agencies and localities for proactively and actively implementing assigned tasks and achieving specific results after the second meeting of the Steering Committee.

The Prime Minister pointed out that out of 18 assigned tasks, 9 have been completed, including a number of important tasks, such as issuing the Government's action plan to implement Resolution 189 of the National Assembly, adjusting the VIII power planning, submitting to the National Assembly to promulgate the Law on Atomic Energy and assigning Khanh Hoa province 3,236 billion VND to implement the resettlement project.

Along with that, the Prime Minister also pointed out 7 tasks being implemented, 2 tasks not yet implemented; pointed out a number of limitations that need to be overcome in the progress of negotiations with foreign partners on the construction of nuclear power plants, site clearance, completion of related legal bases, coordination between ministries, branches and localities that is sometimes not tight; required relevant entities to learn from experience and proactively perform assigned tasks and handle difficulties and problems arising according to their functions, tasks and powers, and at the same time report to competent authorities on issues beyond their authority.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh requested relevant ministries, branches and localities to effectively implement Resolution 328/NQ-CP on the Government's Action Program to implement Resolution No. 70-NQ/TW dated August 20, 2025 of the Politburo on ensuring national energy security until 2030, with a vision to 2045.

The Prime Minister directed many key and specific tasks to ministries, branches and localities related to proposing additional capital for site clearance to meet the requirements and standards of the International Atomic Energy Agency; perfecting the legal basis and specific mechanisms to implement the work, including advising on the development of Resolutions of the National Assembly and the National Assembly Standing Committee to handle related legal problems.

The Prime Minister also directed to promote negotiations and complete agreements with partners based on the principles of harmonious benefits, shared risks, cutting cumbersome procedures, and building appropriate standards and regulations to ensure compliance with safety standards and security guidelines of the International Atomic Energy Agency and international conventions related to the nuclear field.

EVN urgently sets up a pre-feasibility project in October; agencies complete negotiations on a cooperation agreement to build nuclear power plant 1 and complete legal corridors in November 2025.

The Ministry of Education and Training closely coordinates with EVN and Petrovietnam to clearly identify the demand for quantity, qualifications and expertise of human resources serving nuclear power plants; on that basis, organize training and call for and attract domestic and foreign human resources to work.

The Prime Minister requested Khanh Hoa province to mobilize the entire political system to focus on site clearance and resettlement, and the Provincial Party Secretary must directly direct closely with the support of ministries and branches. The Prime Minister especially emphasized the need to do a good job of resettlement for people in the project area according to the principle of ensuring that the new place of residence is at least equal to or better than the old place of residence; quickly stabilize people's lives and ensure the people's legitimate and legal rights and interests; at the same time, propose policies to support people in changing their professions to competent authorities.

Ministries, branches and agencies, according to their functions and tasks, coordinate to handle the recommendations of Khanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee on the mechanism to implement the project of migration, resettlement and site clearance for nuclear power plant projects.

In the spirit of utmost urgency, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh pointed out that ministries, branches, localities, and members of the Steering Committee must continue to focus, spend time, effort, and intelligence to carry out tasks according to their functions, duties, and powers regarding the construction of nuclear power plants.

The Prime Minister assigned Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son to directly direct and resolve issues beyond his authority, and report to the Prime Minister on issues beyond his authority.

Center for Science and Technology Communication (synthesis)

Source: https://mst.gov.vn/dam-bao-an-ninh-nang-luong-quoc-gia-va-cung-ung-du-dien-on-dinh-la-yeu-cau-cap-thiet-197251023095423367.htm