The report says that in order to put the power plant into operation by 2030 as scheduled, there must be specific mechanisms and policies for the project.

In the immediate time, to simultaneously deploy the phases of the project investment preparation and implementation, after considering the opinions of relevant ministries and agencies, the Government has proposed that the National Assembly allow certain policies.

First, regarding partners, the government wants the permission to carry out negotiations with partners to sign an intergovernmental agreement/agreement on cooperation to build a nuclear power plant on Vietnamese territory, and an intergovernmental agreement on state export credit for financing the construction of the plant; or an agreement with other partners, concurrently with the process of investment project approval.

Second, regarding the selection of contractors, the government wants permission to allow the Prime Minister assign investors to implement the project.

Additionally, it is proposed to allow the application of the turnkey contract form and to proceed with contractor selection immediately after the National Assembly approves the investment initiative adjustment of the project.

The other proposals include allowing to apply DAC (direct appointment of contractor) form for the turnkey contract for the construction of the aforementioned main plant with the contractors named in the Intergovernmental Agreement in accordance with the regulations on abridged DAC model; and apply the form of DAC/accelerated DAC for crucial consulting packages during the investment preparation and project implementation phase.

Also, the government wants to be allowed to conduct direct negotiations/abridged DAC to appraise technologies, environmental reports, safety and security, as well as examine nuclear regulatory compliance during the investment and construction phases of the Ninh Thuan nuclear project.

According to Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien, it is necessary to choose the turnkey contract mode to expedite progress, as nuclear power plants require nuclear fuel for the initial cycle and operational experts for maintenance in the initial phase.

Moreover, the current Law on Bidding does not yet stipulate the selection of contractors to perform the package combining investment construction costs and business production costs (procurement of nuclear fuel and maintenance experts). It would take time to select contractors in accordance with the Law on Bidding, which won’t meet the timeline and the project deployment schedule.

Regarding the verification work on safety, security, and nuclear regulatory checks in different investment phases of the construction, currently, the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) does not have sufficient resources to carry this out, while other agencies in Vietnam lack experience in this field. Thus, it is necessary to hire international consultants.

Third, regarding the implementation sequence. The Government proposes allowing the immediate commencement of work before the investment project approval. For instance, the investor and partners carry out surveys, reviews, updates, and finalization of investment project documentation, site approval documentation, and specialized reports concurrently with the process of negotiation for Intergovernmental Agreement sand turnkey contract negotiations.

Fourth, regarding standards and regulations, the government has proposed applying the standards, technical regulations, and technical guidelines suggested by the executing partners that are suitable to nuclear power plants without having to undergo procedures to get approval as prescribed by Vietnamese law.

Fifth, applying norms and unit prices, the government wants permission to apply norms and unit prices based on negotiations with partners.

Sixth, regarding procedures for submission and approval by the owner's representative, the government proposed allowing the investor to be exempt from the procedures of reporting to the owner's representative agency for consideration and approval of the investment project, and the capital mobilization plan as prescribed in point b of paragraph 1 of Article 24 and point b, paragraph 3, Article 23 of the Law on Management and Use of State Capital for Investment in Production and Business at Enterprises.

Seventh, regarding financial planning and capital arrangement, the Government plans to diversify funding sources including government loans, bond issuance, the state budget, and other legal sources.

Eighth, the government wants to allow to waive procedures to get approval for shifting forestland use to other purposes.

Ninth, the government is seeking permission to allow Ninh Thuan province to annually receive targeted supplementary funding from the central budget amounting to 70 percent of increased revenue from the deployment of the nuclear power plant project.

And tenth, allowing investors to collect opinions from the public only via the information portal of the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment.

Tam An