Foreign investors interested in wind power development

A view of a wind power plant in the Mekong Delta City of Bac Lieu.-VNA/VNS Photo Ngoc Ha

The People’s Committee of the Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh has allowed three investors to finance the construction of the Hiep Thanh Wind Power Plant, with total investment of VND3.37 trillion (US$146.5 million).

Of the figure, 20 per cent is contributed by those three investors, including the Ha Noi-based Ecotech Vietnam Company, Janakuasa Singapore Pte Ltd, and Lam Minh – a resident of Ha Noi’s Ba Dinh District. The remainder is from a loan supplied by German bank Landesbank Baden-Wurttembrg (LBBW).

The investors have set up the Ecotech Tra Vinh Renewable Energy JSC to carry out the project.

General Director of Ecotech Tra Vinh Lam Minh said the project had been included in the provincial power development plan for 2016-25 with a view to 2035, approved by the Ministry of Industry and Trade on May 19, 2016. It is expected to be put into operation in the first quarter of 2020.

Minh said the selling price of wind power had been set at 7.8 US cents per kWh according to the Prime Minister’s Decision 37/2011/QD-TTg on the mechanisms supporting the development of wind power projects in Vietnam. However, this price remains low, making it difficult to attract investors.

President and CEO of Janakuasa Vietnam Ti Chee Liang said the Malaysian energy firm was building its first project in the province’s Duyen Hai Commune with a capacity of 1,200MW and an investment of $2.2 billion.

The project is part of the national electricity development scheme for the 2011-20 period with a vision to 2030, he said, adding that Vietnam had become one of the countries with the most development potential in ASEAN.

He hoped that the Vietnamese Government would study and recalculate the price of wind power – which is worth 7.8 US cents per kWh – at a more reasonable level to ensure fairness between renewable energy resources.

During the construction of the wind power plant in Tra Vinh, investors would be responsible for complying with local requirements, ensuring environmental protection and minimising the effects to local aquaculture, he said.

Thailand’s Ratchaburi Energy Co Ltd is also keen to develop renewable energy, particularly wind power in Vietnam. Its director Peerawat Pum Thong said the company hoped to invest in the field and help Ecotech implement the project.

The Hiep Thanh Wind Power Plant is the fourth of its kind to receive an investment licence from local authorities. Previously, the province granted investment licences to three wind power projects with a combined capacity of 192MW in Truong Long Hoa Commune of Duyen Hai Town, and Dong Hai Commune of Duyen Hai District.

According to the provincial wind power development plan through 2020 with a vision to 2030 approved by the Ministry of Industry and Trade on December 4, 2015, Tra Vinh plans to build six wind power projects in coastal areas in Duyen Hai District and Duyen Hai Town, including three in Truong Long Hoa Commune, two in Hiep Thanh Commune, and one in Dong Hai Commune.

Under the national energy development strategy, Vietnam will strive to increase new and renewable energy sources to 5 per cent of the total commercial primary power by 2020, and 11 per cent by 2050.

The country also aims to increase the total capacity of wind power to 1,000MW by 2020 and 6,200MW by 2030.