Three dozens of Vietnamese students receiving a degree in nuclear energy at the Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University underwent the work experience internship in the Training Department of Leningrad NPP under construction. Two-week training was conducted in groups focused on various areas.

The third-year students of the Polytechnic University who visit LNPP for the first time in the course of the internship have studied the technological features of one of the most modern Russian power units with VVER-1200 reactor, the NPP organizational structure, the main equipment of the reactor, turbine and chemical units, have got lectures on the management of the water-chemistry conditions of the units’ primary and second circuits, and also have passed training on a full-scale simulator.

The second group consisting of four-year interns received similar theoretical and practical knowledge in the TD of Leningrad NPP under construction a year ago. This time they have gotten a special course on the preparation and execution of repair works at the NPP. The TD instructors have developed a thematically diverse training plan for students. The students have been told about the structure and tasks of NPP repair shop services, the methods for repairing and monitoring works; and also they have received the deep knowledge of the process of repair equipment commissioning. They have learned about the use of nondestructive methods of monitoring the condition of equipment and the types of maintenance service at an NPP, and got acquainted with the range of tools at the departments.

Anton Matieshin, the Head of the Technological Maintenance and Repair Personnel Training Division of the TD of LNPP under construction, explained that special emphasis was placed on progressive methods of planning and carrying out repairs, because they allowed to reduce the costs and improve the quality of repairs, and often to optimize their terms. “We presented our guests with a complete picture – folded from individual puzzles – of what the repair of a power unit consists of. At the same time, we tried to pass the message to the audience that a nuclear plant has a lot of different equipment that cannot be repaired by one unified standard. Each peace requires a special, individual approach that would take into account unique features, the nature and, of course, the requirements of factory and regulatory documentation”, he added.

After the training, the Vietnamese students underwent a so-called exit control of knowledge, which confirmed a high level of their theoretical knowledge obtained at the TD. “We are sure that the knowledge about nuclear power plants gained in these walls will be useful to them in further studies at the university and later in their professional life. It was interesting and pleasant to work with the first generation of Vietnamese atomic scientists. The students proved themselves to be disciplined, diligent, trying to sort out all the details, and hardworking”, Sergey Rechkin, the Deputy Head of the TD of Leningrad NPP under construction, said.

He also explained that Vietnamese students are not the only ones who have been trained in LNPP-2 – in the framework of Rosatom's international cooperation program, Leningrad specialists train personnel of foreign nuclear power plants being built or planned for construction under Russian project of innovative power units with VVER-1200 reactors.

Sergey Rechkin, “It includes Finland, Egypt, Turkey, Belarus, Hungary, and Bulgaria. For some countries we will train instructors, and for others it will be operational personnel, depending on the contracts concluded. Our Department has highly qualified personnel; many specialists have experience in the construction and commissioning of Bushehr NPP (Iran), Kudankulam NPP (India) and Tianwan NPP (China), as well as the extensive operational experience at domestic nuclear power plants with VVER power units. We have a lot to share with our foreign colleagues.”

“Two years in a row I have been studying at LNPP and I consider this a very useful practice, as I can see with my own eyes how the power unit – that we’ve been studying for several years in the university – works. New Leningrad NPP facilities are striking with their innovative design solutions. I dream that we in our country will also have units. Today I put all my efforts to get valuable knowledge, to become a good specialist, so that the reactors that I will operate work reliably and safely”, Le Thanh Chi shared his impressions.

Le Van Thinh, “I'm interested in everything new, so I decided to go to university and become a nuclear engineer, as this profession is unique for Vietnam. Studying in Russia is interesting, here they give good knowledge. My goal is to work at a nuclear power plant, perhaps in Russia. I want to go through all the steps and grow to the chief engineer. I just need to work on my Russian.”

As Le Thi Cham described, Sosnovy Bor had become a favorite place and almost like home for Vietnamese students during the internship, “The people of Sosnovy Bor treat us very hospitably, we even found friends among our Russian peers. The city impresses with its coziness and good atmosphere; it is nice to live, study and work here. Thank you all for the warm welcome!”