Long An to have first solar farm

Long An's first solar farm will be completed by June 2019

On September 16, BCG Bang Duong organised the ground-breaking ceremony of the solar power farm located in the southern province of Long An’s Thanh Hoa District. The project has a designed capacity of 40.6MW and total investment capital of $42 million.

The construction is expected to be completed by June 2019.

Speaking at the ceremony, BCG Bang Duong chairman Nguyen Ho Nam said the company would co-operate closely with world-leading firms in solar power to ensure quality and environmental safety.

“BCG Dang Duong has partnered up with Syntegra Solar of Germany as the designer and monitor and the solar panels used in the project were made using the latest technology,” Nam stated.

The investor will also develop a 110kV substation in Thanh Hoa District, build an internal road system and install a pump system for reservoirs and a 9km transmission line.

Vietnam’s potential for solar power generation is great, with 1,600-2,700 sunlight hours per year and an average direct normal irradiance of 4-5 kWh per square metre, comparable to Thailand, the Philippines, Spain, and Italy.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) recently released impressive figures indicating that the total output of solar power projects approved to be added to the Power Development Plan VII is quite large. The ministry approved more than 70 new projects to be put into operation before June 2019, with the total designed capacity of over 3,000MW. This amount far exceeds the estimated solar power output of 1,000MW targeted by the original Plan VII by 2020.

Some are calling this a gold rush. The list of renewable energy projects registered by both foreign and domestic investors in Vietnam has been growing consistently, including well-known companies like Tata Power, Sunseap Group, InfraCo Asia Development Pte., Ltd., ACWA Power, SY Panel Group, AIN Group, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy, and Gulf Energy Development.