Vietnam has high potential of renewable energy for electricity production, but it is very hard to realise the potential into particular interests.

Vice director of Energy Department cum head of Renewable Energy Board (under Ministry of Industry and Trade), Le Tuan Phong said that Ministry of Industry and Trade has sought the government's approval on the general strategy for developing renewable energy and the decree on mechanism and policy of supporting and encouraging renewable energy investment such as small hydropower plant, wind power plant, biogas, solar power plant with a goal to ensure the national energy security and reduce the environmental pollution.

As estimated, till 2020, the renewable power production output will account for about 5 percent of total power source (equalling to 2,400MW by 2020). In which, Vietnam will give priority to increase the ratio of new renewable energy sources to 3 percent of total secondary commercial energy output in 2010 and 11 percent by 2050.

According to Phong, first off as for renewable energy, Ministry plans to focus on developing small hydropower factories and then wind power plants and biogas power. Phong shared that the ratio of renewable energy used for power operation in the country's power industry depends much on the state's support and budget. Vu Dinh Tuan, managing director of Fuhrlaender Wind Power Joint Stock Co said that from 2007 the government issued decision on some policies to support clean projects under development mechanism. However, the incentives of the decision are applied in localities differently.

Tuan proposed that it is necessary to build a completed law on developing renewable energy and a particular guidance decree. Failing to have policies to boost power projects from renewable energy, the country by 2020 will have a shortfall of about 20 billion kWh of electricity.

The country has high potential of wind power, but till now the number of wind power plants in Vietnam remains small because the investment capital for such kind of projects is usually higher than the factories using other kinds of energy.

In addition, Vietnam could not tap wind energy for power production fully. Now, some wind power plants in central provinces such as Binh Dinh, Lam Dong, Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan still are operating with small size (few tens of MW) and are not-highly efficient. Binh Thuan is the sole province completing the wind power projection.

Most recently, Fuhrlaender Wind Power Joint Stock Co has gained the investment certificate from Binh Thuan provincial People's Committee to build the first factory of assembling wind power turbine with the production and installation capacity of 100MW of power output a year in Vinh Hao commune, Tuy Phong Dist. The cost for construction is estimated at $25 million.

To create conditions for investors, Vietnam should soon have a specialised mechanism to support wind power projects such as subsidy on renting land and speeding up implementation progress of wind power projects. Also, the government should issue the electricity price policy (in field of wind power) to attract domestic and foreign investors, Tuan proposed.

Factually, Vietnam's development of wind energy faces many difficulties because of the compulsory technology import and high investment cost of about $1,800-2,000 per KW while the country's electricity retailing price last year averaged only 948.5 dong/kWh equalling to $0.052/kWh.

Yesterday Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai presided the meeting on policy of developing wind power with Ministry of Industry and Trade and Hanoi authorities.

Through World Bank, International Development Association (IDA) approved to fund Vietnam in the process of carrying out the renewable energy development project. Total expense for the project is about $318 million, including $204.275 million of ODA and $113.78 million of domestic capital. The time for implementing the project is slated from 2008 to 2014.

According to the result of WB's survey on energy for Asia, Vietnam has the highest potential in wind power with the power capacity availability of 513.360 MW, higher 200 times than the designed capacity of Son La hydropower plant and over 10 times than total estimated power capacity of Vietnam by 2020. US TrueWind Solution organisation reported that Vietnam ranks the top among four nations of Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand in terms of wind power potential.

Nguoi Lao Dong - February 25, 2010