Power plant to cut shortages

The consortium, comprising the leading US power company AES and the state-run Vietnam National Coal, Mineral Industries Group (Vinacomin) aims to cut power shortages when the 1,000 megawatt (MW) Mong Duong 2 opens in 2010.
The state-owned Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) recently estimated that electricity shortages will rise from 1.1 billion kilowatt hours (kWh) in 2006 to 10.3 billion kWh in 2009 before falling to 7.2 billion kWh in 2010.
The deputy general director of Vinacomin, Nguyen Duc Trang, announced that AES and Vinacomin have signed an in-principle agreement to establish a BOT venture, in which the foreign firm would hold a 90 per cent share with the remaining share chipped in by Vinacomin.
“We estimate that the plant will be capitalised at $1 billion, 80 per cent of which will come from external loans,” Trang said.
AES will complete the feasibility study for Mong Duong 2 by the middle of the year to ensure that construction can begin in July next year.
“We hope that all stages of the project will be on schedule,” Trang said.
The Mong Duong coal-fired power complex will comprise two power stations with a total capacity of 2,000MW. Mong Duong 1, which will cost $1 billion to build, will be developed by EVN and be financed by the Asian Development Bank. The complex will consume about six million tonnes of coal per annum.
AES is one of the world’s leading power companies, supplying power to millions of people in 27 countries on five continents: North America, South America, Asia, Europe and Africa.
Vinacomin, which is merged from the Vietnam Coal Corporation and the Vietnam Mineral Corporation, mines coal and bauxite and provides power, transport, property and other services.
The group plans to put into operation several thermal power plants with a combined generation capacity of 1,000W by 2010 at several sites in northern Vietnam including Na Duong, Cao Ngan, Son Dong, Cam Pha and Mao Khe.


No. 748/February 13-19, 2006