Russia and Vietnam expand cooperation on nuclear energy

Russia and Vietnam expand cooperation on nuclear energy

The consortium leader of MBIR Reactor International Research Centre (IRC), LLC, and the Vietnam Atomic Energy Institute (Vinatom) have signed an MoU.

Photo: Atom media

According to the announcement on November 3, the document confirms the readiness of the parties to develop cooperation within the scientific platform of the IRC MBIR.

The document outlines the intention of the parties to develop interaction based on the international centre, including participation in research conducted at its site, and evaluating the conditions for Vinatom to join the IRC MBIR Consortium.

For Vietnamese specialists, this grants access to the experimental infrastructure of the MBIR reactor under construction – the highest-flux fast neutron research facility in the world.

MBIR is a multipurpose fast-neutron research reactor with sodium coolant and the thermal capacity of approximately 150 MW. The reactor is under construction in Dimitrovgrad, Russia.

Among the areas that the Vietnamese party plans to develop at MBIR are testing of structural materials and equipment under intense irradiation, validation of computer codes for safety assessment of nuclear projects, research on the behaviour of various types of nuclear fuel and coolants, as well as studying the transmutation of minor actinides and methods to reduce the volume and activity of radioactive waste.

The high neutron flux and wide range of irradiation parameters at MBIR will allow Vinatom to conduct research closely simulating the operating conditions of advanced reactor concepts, and to enhance its own scientific and technological base for the development of the national nuclear programme.

"This is a strategic step for the development of cooperation in the field of peaceful uses of nuclear energy. We look forward to long-term joint research work," Tran Chi Thanh, president of Vinatom said.

Vasily Konstantinov, director general of IRC MBIR LLC, said,"The signed document consolidates our mutual readiness for interaction. I am confident that this will strengthen the international scientific agenda of MBIR."

Vinatom is the leading state-run scientific organisation in Vietnam, operating under the management of the Ministry of Science and Technology. Founded in 1976, the institute serves as the nation’s primary centre for fundamental and applied research in the peaceful uses of atomic energy, nuclear physics, reactor technologies, and radiation materials science.

The IRC in the form of an international consortium is established on the basis of MBIR reactor. The consortium participants gain ‘fast track’ access to carry out the experiments needed for national programmes of nuclear energy peaceful applications.

VIR