South Korea's Nuclear Safety and Security Commission Holds High-Level Talks with Vietnam: Deepening Nuclear Safety Regulatory Cooperation to Support Restart of Ninh Thuan Nuclear Power Project

The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (NSSC) of South Korea held talks with a high-level Vietnamese delegation on October 1, 2026, in the large conference room in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Choi Wonho, Chairman of the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission of South Korea, Vu Hai Quan, Minister of the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) of Vietnam, and Nguyen Hoang Linh, Director General of the Vietnam Agency for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (VARANS), jointly attended the meeting, focusing on in-depth communication regarding systematic cooperation between the two countries in the fields of nuclear safety and nuclear security.

Vietnam's National Assembly formally approved in 2024 the restart of the long-shelved Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) construction project, and completed a comprehensive amendment of the Atomic Energy Law in 2025. It is currently accelerating the establishment of an independent regulatory system and technical standards suitable for the commercial development of nuclear power. Meanwhile, the South Korean nuclear power industry consortium, represented by the Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), is actively seeking to undertake the construction of the Ninh Thuan Nuclear Power Plant Unit 2 project in Vietnam.

During the talks, the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission of South Korea systematically shared the evolution and mature framework of South Korea's nuclear safety regulatory system, and provided a detailed introduction to practical cases of cross-border regulatory collaboration and review benchmarking previously carried out in the Barakah NPP in the United Arab Emirates and the Dukovany new unit cooperation in the Czech Republic.

The Vietnamese representatives pointed out that with the substantive restart of the Ninh Thuan nuclear power project, improving the country's nuclear safety regulatory laws and regulations, refining the licensing and approval process, and rapidly enhancing the professional competence of regulatory personnel have become urgent priorities. To this end, the Vietnamese side formally proposed to the South Korean side a request for cooperation in deepening regulatory technical support and experience sharing.

Both sides reached an agreement to regularly hold online technical seminars in the future, systematically delivering South Korea's engineering regulatory practices in dimensions such as reactor design review and construction and operation licensing approval. Using this as an entry point, the two countries plan to further broaden practical cooperation channels such as specialized training for regulatory personnel and mutual exchange visits of technical experts.

Chairman Choi Wonho stated that he hopes South Korea's decades of accumulated experience in nuclear safety review and on-site inspection can provide support for Vietnam in establishing a solid foundation for nuclear energy development and safety regulatory capacity. South Korean regulatory authorities will continue to expand international cooperation in the cultivation of professional talent teams and institutional development, safeguarding regional nuclear safety.