website: http://www.nuclearafrica.co.za/home.htm Hanoi, Vietnam, October 27, 2015 Dr Kelvin Kemm of Nuclear Africa was invited by the Vietnam Atomic Energy Institute (VINATOM) to present a guest presentation on the implementation of a nuclear power programme. The one day seminar was held in Hanoi, Vietnam. Dr Thanh Chi Tran, President of VINATOM was the host of the seminar and the event was chaired by Mr Egor Simonov Regional Vice President : South East Asia of the Russian nuclear company, Rosatom. Also present was Dr Arnold Soetrisnanto of the National Research Council of Indonesia. Indonesia is also interested in the implementation of a nuclear power programme. Interesting issues covering a nuclear power programme were discussed such as topics as fundamental as the basic geography of the three countries. South Africa is as large as the whole of western Europe demanding that very large distances be covered by electrical transmission lines, and the transportation of nuclear materials. In contrast, Vietnam is a very long country, being some 1 500 km in length, but only some 50 km wide at its narrowest point. This geography plus thick vegetation presents challenges for transmission lines. In contrast, Indonesia is a collection of islands. These differences provided many similarities in the nature of nuclear issues to be faced. The same was true of the general public acceptance of nuclear and it was found that these public issues were very similar for all three countries. There were also a few Russian specialists present who provided information on issues such as the handling of nuclear waste.
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