Korea and UAE Eye Joint Bid for Vietnam's Ninh Thuan 2 Nuclear Power Project

A "Korean team" comprising the Korean government, Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) is seeking cooperation with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to jointly compete for Vietnam's nuclear power project. The proposed plan aims to combine South Korea's experience in large-scale nuclear power plant construction with the UAE's financial strength to enhance both parties' competitiveness in the international nuclear power market.

According to sources from South Korea's nuclear power industry, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) held a high-level meeting with Vietnam's Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) in Hanoi earlier this month, proposing a joint South Korea-UAE participation in the construction of Vietnam's Ninh Thuan 2 Nuclear Power Project. The Ninh Thuan nuclear power project is located in Ninh Thuan Province in central Vietnam, with plans to build four nuclear power units. In the early arrangements of the project, Russia planned to bid for the Ninh Thuan 1 Nuclear Power Project, while Japan planned to bid for the Ninh Thuan 2 Nuclear Power Project. After Japan withdrew and relinquished its preferential bidding rights, South Korea gained the opportunity to enter the competition for the project.

Based on current estimates, if the South Korean side succeeds in winning the bid, the project scale is expected to be approximately 12 trillion to 13 trillion Korean won. Rather than proceeding independently, the South Korean side has proposed a trilateral cooperation framework involving Korea, the UAE, and Vietnam, primarily considering the UAE's strong capabilities in project financing. Industry insiders in the nuclear power sector noted that the UAE is capable of offering competitive interest rates in the financing stage; if South Korea's technological capabilities are combined with UAE capital, it would help counter competition from companies in countries such as China and France.

The South Korean government has previously expressed its intention to expand nuclear energy cooperation with the UAE on multiple occasions. During his visit to the UAE in November last year, South Korean President Lee Jae-myung stated that the successful construction and operation of the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant in the UAE had opened a new phase of energy cooperation between the two countries, and that both sides would continue to promote joint entry into the global nuclear power market.

Last month, South Korea's Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, Kim Jung-kwan, visited the UAE and met with senior officials from major local nuclear energy-related institutions to discuss the selection of candidate countries and the establishment of a cooperation framework for jointly exploring nuclear power markets in third countries. For South Korea's nuclear power industry, if the Korea-UAE joint proposal makes progress in Vietnam, it could provide a new project foothold for expanding overseas nuclear power exports.