IAEA to visit Thailand to study nuke power

Bangkok, Sep 5: The global nuclear energy watchdog will send experts to Thailand later this month to assess the Thai government's plan to build the country's first nuclear power plant.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) team will be here from September 24 to 28, Deputy Director-General of the Energy Policy and Planning Office, Chavalit Pichalai said.

The Thai government has announced plans to build four 1,000 MW atomic energy plants to start generating electricity by 2020 in order to reduce reliance on petroleum product imports and cut down on greenhouse gas emissions.

Expert panels have been set up to evaluate the various aspects of nuclear power generation, including technical, legal, human resource development, human and environmental safety as well as public acceptance issues.

UNI