Forum outlines pathways to accelerate green transition

Sarah Hooper, Australia’s consul general in Ho Chi Minh City, said that the green transition had evolved from a policy discussion into a fundamental business requirement.

Opening remarks by Sarah Hooper, Australia’s consul general in Ho Chi Minh City

“Current disruptions in energy supplies and shifting global trade requirements are reshaping industrial sectors faster than anticipated,” Hooper said. “This presents a unique prospect for Australian financiers to partner with the country in its next development phase.”

Vietnam currently ranks among the top 20 global economies for trade volume and foreign direct investment (FDI) attraction, with a strategic vision to achieve high-income status by 2045.

To reach its net-zero commitments, Can Van Luc, member of the Policy Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, noted that the country required an estimated $368 billion for climate-related action, placing significant pressure on the private sector to adapt to increasingly stringent global market standards.

Prof. Andrew Blakers of the Australian National University, co-inventor of the PERC solar cell, argued that the single most important step for the nation was deregulating the market to allow private capital to flow freely into rooftop solar.

“It unleashes millions of private panels and allows the energy transition to take off quickly while scaling up,” said Blakers, noting that Vietnam was starting from a position of advantage because it is a few years behind Australia, the costs of solar panels, wind turbines, and batteries have fallen substantially, making the path forward both technically straightforward and more affordable.

On energy storage, Blakers said Vietnam had approximately 6,000 potential off-river pumped hydro sites, of which it needed only six to 12.

Pham Tien Dac from the Strategy Department at the Vietnam International Financial Centre (VIFC), said the scale of the net-zero financing needs made green finance one of the VIFC’s most critical focal areas. He noted that VIFC had built a range of investor-friendly measures into its framework.

“Overseas funders can choose their own arbitration methods, receive an enterprise registration certificate in as little as five to seven days, and access a 10 per cent corporate income tax rate for 10 years on priority sector projects. We are also developing dedicated carbon and green credit trading platforms to ensure transparent pricing,” he said.

The forum brought together representatives from the government, businesses, investors, and research institutes of both countries

However, the gap between high-level policy and on-the-ground readiness drew pointed commentary from the private sector.

Ellen Van, investment director at fund manager Mekong Capital, acknowledged that the nation consistently ranked at the top of international backer watch lists, yet much of that capital had not been deployed.

“Overseas financiers are cautious because there is often a disconnect between their high-level strategies and the realities on the ground,” Van said.

"Companies seeking private equity must come prepared with financial transparency, proper audits, and data-backed ESG claims," she added, noting that the industry needed to rid itself of jargon that creates a communication barrier between funders and businesses.

Nguyen Quang Thuan, executive chairman and CEO of credit rating agency FiinRatings, urged businesses not to treat the green transition as a public relations exercise.

“View the green transition as a long-term strategic initiative rather than a short-term operating expense,” he said.

Thuan cautioned that owning a green asset did not automatically guarantee cheaper borrowing, as financial providers price on risk-adjusted terms.

He pointed to transition finance, which includes incremental improvements such as more efficient industrial heating systems, as a legitimate and underutilised pathway for manufacturers not yet positioned to pursue fully green projects.

“International backers expect VIFC to deliver on four fronts: clear tax incentives, well-defined legal frameworks, alignment with common law, and, most critically, free capital control,” Thuan said.

Academic-policy network planned to support VIFC development Vietnam is working to establish a nationally recognised academic-policy forum in finance, aimed at strengthening policy advisory capacity and supporting the development of its International Financial Centre.

Vietnam-US forum advances strategic technology collaboration A high-level innovation and investment forum in California has strengthened Vietnam's push to become a key node in global technology supply chains.

Vietnam’s green push requires further hurdles to clear Vietnam’s energy transition is entering a decisive phase, where ambition is rapidly giving way to the harder realities of execution, bankability, and scale.