Mitsubishi to build onshore wind farm in Laos to sell electricity to Vietnam

June 18, 2021 | 23:42

(0) user say

Mitsubishi Corporation will build an onshore wind farm based in Laos, which could then sell electricity to Vietnam.

Mitsubishi to build onshore wind farm in Laos to sell electricity to Vietnam

Japanese corporation Mitsubishi plans to build an onshore wind farm in Laos and sell electricity to Vietnam

Mitsubishi Corporation will develop a wind farm with power generation capacity of 600MW. Accordingly, this could be one of the largest onshore wind farms in Southeast Asia, according to Nikkei Asia.

Although the Japanese giant did not disclose the detailed figure, experts anticipate that the investment could be roughly hundreds of millions of dollars.

In 2016, Vietnam entered an agreement to share electricity with Laos. Mitsubishi expects that cross-border power sharing will gain steam in Southeast Asia's renewable energy industry, following the footsteps of other European countries.

One of Mitsubishi's subsidiaries will hold a 20 per cent stake in the joint venture to be formed with two Thai renewable-energy developers. Construction by the new company is predicted to start by the end of this year with operations to begin in 2024, Nikkei Asia reported. Moreover, a grid network will be built to send power to Vietnam under a 25-year contract.

According to the International Finance Corporation under the World Bank, despite Vietnam’s huge potential, by the end of 2020, wind power accounted for less than 1 per cent (or 670MW) of the nation’s total installed capacity. The Vietnamese government aims to increase renewable energy capacity – mainly wind but also solar power, including rooftop solar – by 19GW to more than 36GW by 2030.

Meanwhile, coal and hydropower each make up for around 40 per cent of Vietnam's energy sources. However, during Vietnam's dry seasons, usage at hydroelectric plants declines, leading to severe power shortages.

By Lam Tien

What the stars mean:

★ Poor ★ ★ Promising ★★★ Good ★★★★ Very good ★★★★★ Exceptional