Consolidated Text No. 122/2026/VBHN-NQ-VPQH: Resolution on Special Mechanisms and Policies for the Ninh Thuan Nuclear Power Plant Project
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Based on:122/2026/VBHN-NQ-VPQH - Government Official Gazette
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This is a consolidated text merging National Assembly Resolution No. 189/2025/QH15 (effective 19 February 2025) with the amendments made by Standing Committee Resolution No. 121/2026/UBTVQH15 (effective 30 March 2026). Together they set out special mechanisms and policies for building the Ninh Thuan 1 and Ninh Thuan 2 nuclear power plants. The resolution grants a package of exceptions available only to this project: fast-track direct contractor appointment (no competitive bidding) for the turnkey main-plant package and key consulting packages; international treaty negotiations run in parallel with investment-policy approval; use of the foreign partner's own technical standards where Vietnamese standards are absent; domestic commercial banks are exempted from counting the investor's loans toward their credit-concentration limits under the Law on Credit Institutions; the investor may borrow ODA and issue project bonds without some of the usual appraisal steps. Ninh Thuan province keeps 70% of incremental budget revenue generated by the project, may borrow ODA above the normal cap, and applies land-recovery compensation and resettlement support at a 1.5x multiplier for households and organizations whose land is taken for the project. For SMEs generally, direct impact is minimal since these are one-off exceptions tied to a single national energy infrastructure project. Parties directly affected are the state-owned project investor, commercial banks arranging financing, domestic and foreign contractors bidding for the works, and landholders and businesses in the affected areas of Ninh Thuan province. Accountants and tax advisors serving those parties should note the special credit-limit exemptions and the enhanced land-compensation formula described above.
Scope and Subjects
The resolution sets out special mechanisms and policies for building the Ninh Thuan Nuclear Power Plant Project, comprising the Ninh Thuan 1 and Ninh Thuan 2 plants and their component sub-projects, plus policies applying specifically to Ninh Thuan province. It applies to state agencies and Ninh Thuan province, the project investor and the unit tasked with project preparation, and other related organizations and individuals.
Investor and Contractor Selection
- The Prime Minister directly assigns the investor for the projects.
- Fast-track direct contractor appointment applies to the turnkey package for building the main plant (covering nuclear fuel supply and five years of operation and maintenance after commissioning) with the contractor named in the relevant international treaty; insurance may be purchased from a foreign insurer without a licensed branch in Vietnam.
- Fast-track direct appointment also applies to key consulting packages (pre-feasibility studies, contract negotiation support, design appraisal) and to technology, safety and nuclear-security assessment work.
Implementation Sequence and Technical Standards
International treaty negotiations, turnkey contract negotiations, and investment-preparation steps (site survey, ordnance clearance, site leveling, construction infrastructure) may proceed in parallel, ahead of the formal investment decision. Technical standards and codes proposed by the foreign partner may be applied provided they are not lower than Vietnamese standards and align with IAEA safety and security guidance.
Special Financing Mechanisms
- The investor is not required to submit capital-mobilization plans or asset-mortgage proposals to the state-ownership representative agency under the Law on Management and Use of State Capital.
- ODA and foreign concessional loans may be drawn without the usual program/project proposal procedure; matching capital may be raised via corporate bonds, project bonds, and government-guaranteed bonds.
- Domestic commercial banks are exempted from counting the investor's (and related parties') loans toward the credit-concentration limits under Article 136(1) and (3) of the Law on Credit Institutions.
- Project-related loan and bond balances are excluded when calculating the investor's debt-to-equity ratio.
- The Prime Minister may approve increasing the investor's charter capital via revaluation of fully depreciated assets from BOT and multi-purpose hydropower plants.
- Re-lending eligibility appraisal and investment-performance guarantee requirements under the Law on Investment are waived.
Land, Forest, and Minerals
Forest-conversion approval procedures are waived (natural forest conversion still to be minimized); no adjustment is required to national mineral reserve zones or exploration/mining planning zones where the project overlaps them. Ordinary construction-material mining licenses for the project may be granted without auctioning mining rights; operating mines may raise output by up to 50% without needing investment-policy adjustment or a new environmental impact assessment.
Policies for Ninh Thuan Province
- The central budget provides an annual targeted supplement equal to 70% of the province's incremental revenue from the project (capped at the central budget's own incremental revenue).
- The province may re-borrow ODA and foreign concessional loans up to 90% of its allocated revenue; an extra 40% is added to the population-based recurrent expenditure norm.
- The investor may directly appoint contractors for consulting, procurement and construction packages related to compensation, support and resettlement.
- 100% of carbon-credit trading revenue accrues to the provincial budget and is excluded from the central-provincial revenue-sharing ratio.
- Land recovery compensation and resettlement: compensation for land and attached assets is multiplied by 1.5x the land price table; vocational-conversion support runs up to 5x agricultural land price (times 1.5x); resettled households meeting the minimum resettlement plot receive a 100% land-use fee exemption; the policy also covers land without a certificate where the holder is eligible for one.
Anti-Corruption Safeguards
The Prime Minister forms an inter-agency task force (Defense, Public Security, Finance, Government Inspectorate, State Audit) to monitor the directly-appointed packages. The turnkey contract draft must be audited by the State Audit Office before signing, with results due within 30 days. Officials involved in drafting or issuing related policy may have liability waived, exempted or reduced under applicable rules.
National Assembly Delegation
When the National Assembly is not in session, its Standing Committee may decide on adjustments to the project's investment policy (except increases to total investment) and may add to or adjust the special mechanisms and policies.
Effective Dates
The original Resolution No. 189/2025/QH15 took effect on 19 February 2025; the amendments in Resolution No. 121/2026/UBTVQH15 took effect on 30 March 2026. Cases where land recovery decisions or compensation plans were already approved under the original resolution continue under the new compensation policy to keep the project consistent.