Key energy project development needs to accelerate for enough power supply

Experts believe that accelerating the development progress of projects in the energy sector can ensure electricity supply in both the short and long terms.

These are projects of power sources, grids and supply and renewable energy in the National Energy Master Plan, and planning for the fields of oil, gas, coal and minerals.

Economic expert, Dr. Võ Trí Thành said that to ensure the progress of implementation of key energy projects, it was necessary to have a breakthrough in development of those projects and in policy and mechanisms.

Đoàn Ngọc Dương, deputy director of the Department of Electricity and Renewable Energy, Ministry of Industry and Trade, said that many energy projects worth billions of dollars must mobilise foreign investment capital.

However, there are many non-specific contents relating to energy production and business in laws, such as gas and electricity offtake and mechanism of converting gas prices to electricity prices.

The ministry is developing a draft to propose policies and regulations to create favourable conditions for the foreign investors in investment activities to those projects.

In addition, experts and State managers noted that foreign investors with extensive international experience and a desire to put investment to the energy projects, need to carefully study Việt Nam's legal system.

Along with implementing the National Electricity Development Plan for the period 2021-2030, vision to 2050 (Power Plan 8), the Prime Minister in April 2024 approved the list of important energy programmes, works and projects of the nation and the energy sector.

Of which, five key hydropower projects with output from 200 MW to 1,200 MW are to be deployed and put into operation by 2030.

Also, according to Electricity of Việt Nam (EVN)'s production, business, investment and development plan approved in April by the Prime Minister, some power production projects must start construction and be put into operation during this period. They include expanded projects of Hoà Bình,Yaly and Trị An hydropower plants, Quảng Trạch 1 thermal power plant, Bác Ái pumped storage hydropower plant, and Phước Thái 2 and 3 solar power plants.

Regarding investment in power grid development, EVN must complete and put into operation 225 500-220 kV transmission grid projects in the period 2021-2025, including the key 500kV line project from Quảng Trạch (Quảng Bình Province) to Phố Nối (Hưng Yên Province) planned to complete in 2024.

Under EVN's five-year production, business and development investment plan until 2025, EVN needs a total investment capital of VNĐ479 trillion to develop the projects and has an average commercial electricity growth rate in the period 2021-2025 of about 7 per cent each year to meet the domestic electricity demand.