Satellites, nuclear power on agenda as Macron visits Vietnam next week

By Francesco Guarascio and Elizabeth Pineau

HANOI/PARIS (Reuters) -Infrastructure and energy are among issues France's President Emmanuel Macron is expected to discuss with Vietnam's leaders next week during a state visit to the former colony when dozens of deals may be signed, officials said.

The first trip to Vietnam by a French president in nearly a decade is part of a larger tour of Southeast Asia. Macron is set to arrive in Hanoi on May 25, move to Indonesia on May 27 and finish in Singapore, where he will speak at the annual Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's top defence conference, starting on May 30.

Macron's Elysee office told Reuters dozens of deals were being prepared and could be signed during the visit. One official with knowledge of the talks said about 30 pacts were under discussion ahead of a signing ceremony on Monday.

Vietnam's foreign affairs ministry did not reply to a request for comment.

Caught off-guard by the threat of high tariffs from the United States, export-reliant Vietnam is trying to readjust its growth model to focus more on government spending, with massive investments planned in transport, communications and energy.

Macron is following leaders of China, Japan and other European countries in visiting the region in recent weeks, in a sign of Southeast Asia's strategic importance amid uncertainties on global supply chains and trade.

SATELLITES, ENERGY

One agreement under negotiation is for the replacement of an earth-observation satellite, built by Airbus Defence's predecessor and launched in 2013.

A non-binding memorandum of understanding on that could be signed during Macron's visit, one official said. A second official said other satellite discussions were under way.

Airbus did not reply to a request for comment but has said in the past it was working on the replacement of Vietnam's satellite. The Elysee did not comment about this specific agreement.

France is also keen to discuss energy cooperation, with progress expected on renewables projects under the EU-backed Just Energy Transition Partnership, the two officials said.

Nuclear energy will also be on the table, although no deals were expected, one of the sources said. Vietnam has decided to relaunch its nuclear power programme as it struggles to meet growing energy needs from its expanding economy.

Russia and Japan appear to be ahead in nuclear talks at the moment, officials have said. France, South Korea and the United States have also discussed possible cooperation with Hanoi. Talks with the U.S. progressed alongside trade negotiations this week, according to the Vietnamese government.

France is also interested in plans for a new high-speed link between Vietnam's top cities, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, which at an estimated cost of $67 billion would be Vietnam's largest infrastructure project.

(Reporting by Francesco Guarascio in Hanoi and Elizabeth Pineau in Paris; Additional reporting by Phuong Nguyen in Hanoi; Editing by Alex Richardson)