Le Viêt Nam, aujourd'hui

Alstom and its consortium partner, Hydrochina Huadong Engineering Corp., signed a contract worth about $23.6 million, with Vietnam Electricity, to provide electro-mechanical equipment and technical services for Song Bung 4 hydropower project in Vietnam.

Southeast Asia's largest hydroelectric power station has begun operating to help ease an electricity shortage in fast-growing Vietnam, an official said on December 19.

Vietnam on Friday began construction of its largest private sector power project, amid calls for more investment in the sector in the energy-short nation.

Le Dinh Tien, Vietnam's deputy minister of science and technology, said the country considers safety a priority in its nuclear energy development following the disaster in Japan earlier this year.

Vietnam's state oil and gas group Petrovietnam said it would start building a $1.2-billion coal-fired power plant in early January in the country's southern region.

A chemical explosion at a power plant in Vietnam has killed two workers and seriously injured four others, officials and state media said Wednesday.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade has proposed that the government cancels 38 approved hydropower plant projects in the central region as they pose serious threats to the environment and society.

Nike Inc plans to stop production from three factories in China and one in Vietnam as part of a global review of its supply chain aimed at making the company more efficient, a senior executive said.

HANOI - General Electric of the United States and Asian rivals in the nuclear power sector such as Daewoo and Toshiba are among companies looking to win big contracts in Southeast Asia as the region's countries turn to the once-shunned energy source to fuel future economic growth.