Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia is ready to operate its own nuclear power plant as it has enough qualified manpower, Malaysian Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB) has said.
Prof Emeritus Dr Noramly, chairman of AELB, who is also with the Science and Technology Faculty at University Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), said the university had already produced about 900 graduates in nuclear science.
"This includes masters and PhD holders, 95 percent of whom are in the country and have the expertise and experience to run a nuclear power plant," he told the UKM News Portal
after a two day workshop on nuclear energy which ended yesterday.
He said the start up time needed for the operation of the plant was between 10 and 15 years, following the government`s decision to have its first nuclear power plant in 2021.
Thirty-three nuclear experts from 14 countries attended the workshop jointly hosted by UKM and the University of Tokyo.
Malaysia is following in the footsteps of Indonesia, Vietnam and Bangladesh which will be operating their first nuclear power plant by 2020.
Prof Noramly said that although Bangladesh was comparatively less industrialised than Malaysia, it nevertheless planned to have its nuclear power plant built by 2020.
"They can tap into the knowledge of thousands of
experts and staff trained in nuclear science that are now
working in advanced countries," he said.
He said even though the cost of building a nuclear
power plant could run up to USD 6.1 billion, its lifespan
could go on for about 60 years, benefiting up to three
generations.
PTI
