Opinion | Vietnam’s renewed nuclear power push faces formidable hurdles

Money, corruption, a lack of skilled staff and other factors may derail Hanoi’s goal of building its first nuclear power plant by 2031

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A nuclear power plant operating at night. Russia’s state-owned energy company Rosatom has been contracted to build Vietnam’s first nuclear power plant. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 11:30am, 8 Feb 2026

Vietnam has ambitious plans to build a series of nuclear power plants to power its fast-developing economy, with several countries lined up to facilitate the transition. Still, the country’s nuclear power ambitions face immense challenges.

At the recently concluded congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam, General Secretary To Lam made a bold pledge to grow the economy by at least 10 per cent annually until 2030.

To achieve that lofty goal, Vietnam will have to at least double its current power generation capacity. To meet its net zero emissions goal by 2050, much of that power will have to come from renewables, including nuclear.

Two countries appear well placed to help: Russia and South Korea. But the road ahead might hit some obstacles.

Vietnam’s nuclear power aspirations date back to the introduction of economic reforms in the mid-1980s. It was not until 2009 that Hanoi announced plans to build 14 nuclear power plants across the country by 2030.

The first two would be located in Ninh Thuan, now called Khanh Hoa province, each consisting of four nuclear reactors. The combined generating capacity of the two plants would exceed 4,000 megawatts.

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Money, corruption, a lack of skilled staff and other factors may derail Hanoi’s goal of building its first nuclear power plant by 2031

Money, corruption, a lack of skilled staff and other factors may derail Hanoi’s goal of building its first nuclear power plant by 2031