Workers of Vietnam Electricity check the transmission system. (Photo: VNA) An made the statement in response to National Assembly deputies’ questionabout why Vietnam had not connected domestic renewable energy projects with atotal capacity of 4,600 MW to the national power grid but increased importsfrom Laos and China.
NA deputy Ta Thi Yen said at a meeting late last week that while thenegotiations of pricing to connect renewable energy projects to the nationalpower grid faced roadblocks, Vietnam was forced to increase the import fromLaos and China to make up for the shortage. This was a huge waste when hundredsof solar and wind power energy projects could not generate power forconsumption while the economy was facing a severe shortage of electricity, shesaid.
In response, An said that Vietnam imported electricity not because of theshortage. The country has been buying from China since 2005 via transmissionlines in Lao Cai and Ha Giang provinces and from Laos, mostly hydroelectricity,following an intergovernmental cooperation agreement in 2019.
The electricity import from Laos was around 7 million kWh per day and 4 millionkWh from China, very modest compared to the daily consumption demand, estimatedat around 445-450 million kWh in the northern region.
An said that the purchase was under cooperation agreements with countries inthe Greater Mekong sub-region, which would enable the connection of the powergrid with other countries in the region. In addition, the electricity masterplan No 8 also set out the target of exporting renewable energy to neighbouringcountries.
Vietnam had 220 kV line linking with Laos and 110 kV with China. Under thecommitments with Laos, Vietnam would import at least 3,000 MW from this countryby 2025 and 5,000 by 2030.
An pointed out that the electricity import from Laos and China increased thisyear because of a shortage of supply caused by extreme weather and drought inthe dry season.
The electricity import price was lower than some domestic sources, according tothe ministry.
For example, it was around 6.5 cent or 1,540 VND per kWh fromChina and 6.9 cent from Laos. Statistics of Vietnam Electricity (EVN) showedthat the average electricity purchasing price was around 1,845-2,200 VND perkWh in the first three months of this year, meaning that the prices from Laosand China were lower than some domestic sources.
Bui Van Thinh, President of the Binh Dinh Wind Power Association, said thatpower shortage was mainly in the northern region while renewable energyprojects were concentrated in the central and southern regions, creatingpressure on the North–South 500 kV transmission network.
Buying electricity from China and Laos is reasonable, he said.
Regarding the roadblocks to the connection of more than 4,600 MW of renewableenergy to the national power grid, An said that many projects had not met legalprocedures due to violations of regulations about planning, land andconstruction investment.
He said that removing the roadblocks for renewable energy projects was beinghastened based on the harmonisation of all sides' benefits.
EVN’s statistics showed that there were 52 wind and solar power projects with atotal capacity of 3,155 MW which had applied for negotiations. Of them, 42 witha total capacity of nearly 2,259 MW completed pricing negotiations with EVN. About33 projects with a total capacity of 1,581 MW had not applied for negotiations.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade approved temporary prices for19 projects with a total capacity of 1,347 MW. As of May 26, five projects witha total capacity of 303 MW were eligible for commercial operation, meaning thatthe power system would have an additional supply source of more than 300 MWfrom these plants in the next few days./.
VNA
