Vietnam sets aside $153.9 mln to train nuclear power workforce
Last updated: 8/24/2010 10:55

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has approved a sum of VND3-trillion (US$153.9 million) to train and develop human resources for the atomic energy industry by 2020.

Under the project, Vietnam aims to train 2,400 engineers, and 350 master and doctorate holders for nuclear power.

Some of the trainees will be sent to study overseas.

Vietnam is now facing a dearth of human resources for nuclear science and technology, local news website, VnExpress, recently reported, quoting a survey by the Ministry of Education and Training as saying that, as of 2008, the country possesses 505 officials and scientists with relevant degrees.

Only 62, with an average age of 50-years-old, of them hold doctorates, while one-third of 12 professors and associate professors are between 60 and 62 years old, according to the news source.

In the meantime, Vietnam plans to build nuclear power plants with a total capacity of 15,000-16,000 megawatts in five provinces to meet 10 percent of the country’s total electricity demand in 2030, VnExpress cited a government project as saying.

The first plant is expected to break ground in the central province of Ninh Thuan in 2014 and to start operating in 2020 with a total investment of VND200 trillion ($10.2 billion), it said.

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