By VU TRONG KHANH and PATRICK BARTA
HANOI -- Vietnam's National Assembly, the country's lawmaking body, approved a resolution to build the country's first two nuclear power plants, signaling Vietnam's desire to become Asia's next nuclear energy supplier.
The move doesn't amount to a final approval. Officials must still work out some details -- including exact location of the plants -- before they obtain a final greenlight from Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung. Timing for that step remains unclear.
But the move underscores the government's determination to move ahead with nuclear projects despite concerns among some residents and outside analysts that Southeast Asian nations aren't yet ready to handle the high cost and complexity of nuclear power facilities. The two plants are expected to cost around 200 trillion Vietnamese dong ($11.3 billion), the government said -- a hefty price tag at a time when Vietnam has just devalued its currency and faces rising debt payments.
Several other countries in the region, including Indonesia and Thailand, have signaled interest in building nuclear power plants to remedy growing shortfalls in electricity supply, and also to wean the region from its heavy reliance on dirty-burning coal.
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