Following the release of Vietnam’s eighth national power development plan (“PDP8”) in mid-2023, the Prime Minister has now approved the implementation plan to PDP8 under Decision No. 262/QD-TTg (“Decision 262”). As the name implies, this plan sets out how PDP8 will be implemented, reflecting input from key stakeholders including the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT), the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), Vietnam Electricity (EVN), the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), Petrovietnam (PVN), Vinacomin and provincial authorities.
We are still analysing in detail the implications of Decision 262, but some immediate takeaways are:
STATUS OF DOMESTIC GAS-FIRED AND IMPORTED POWER PROJECTS
Decision 262 sets out a status update on the 13 imported LNG power projects and 10 domestic gas-fired power projects which were earmarked for completion by 2030 under PDP8 in order to achieve a total imported LNG power capacity of 22,400MW and a total domestic gas capacity of 14,930MW.
CAPACITY ALLOCATION FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY
Decision 262 also sets out how renewable energy capacity targets to be attained by 2030 for the nation as a whole (see below) will be allocated between the provinces:
- Offshore wind - 6,000MW
- Onshore wind (including near shore) - 17,894MW
- Biomass - 1,878MW
- Rooftop solar - 2,600MW
KEY LEGISLATIVE MANDATES THROUGH TO 2025
Decision 262 sets out the legislative mandate for:
- implementing a direct PPA regime to enable renewable energy generators to directly sell clean electricity to private offtakers;
- developing distributed/rooftop solar projects for self-consumption;
- amending the Electricity Law and Law on Efficient Use of Energy to achieve the objectives of PDP8;
- developing a carbon credit market; and
- establishing a tariff for each type of fuel source.
TRANSMISSION PROJECTS
In PDP8, the government committed to upgrading the country’s dilapidated grid network in order to efficiently link regional power systems and unlock the potential of large scale renewable energy resources. Decision 262 now sets out the transmission projects that will be developed to achieve this upgrade to the grid system, including the construction of reliable 500 kV and 220 kV transmission grids.
RURAL POWER SUPPLY PROGRAM
Many rural, mountainous and island areas of the country remain off-grid, so it is positive to note that Decision 262 sets out the Government’s plan to extend power supply to these historically under-served regions.
Despite being hampered by a number of delays, the release of Decision 262 on 1 April 2024 is a positive step forward to realize Vietnam’s energy transition ambitions. There is still much work to be done to achieve the ambitious targets in PDP8 and the country’s net-zero goals, and whether this will materialise will in large part depend on the implementation of legislation and policies that are expected to follow.
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