Vietnam targets international cooperation for renewable energy development

Vietnam has launched multiple initiatives to ensure energy demands for sustainable development, including prioritising international cooperation to develop renewable and clean energy sources.

Delegates press the button to inaugurate the BCG-CME Long An 1 solar plant in Thanh Hoa district, Long An province on June 23.
Delegates press the button to inaugurate the BCG-CME Long An 1 solar plant in Thanh Hoa district, Long An province on June 23.

>>> Long An inaugurates VND1 trillion solar power plant

Vietnam's economy has achieved an impressive rate of growth over the last few years. Its growth is expected to be strong and sustainable for decades to come. Looking forward, economic reports project that Vietnam's economy will continue to grow at a high rate of 6.5-7.5% per year from now until at least 2030.

Specifically, to maintain Vietnam's current economic growth, for every 1% of GDP growth requires 2.2% of growth in electricity production. Therefore, the National Electricity Development Plan was approved, targeting to increase the national power installation capacity to 130,000 MW by 2030, compared to the current capacity of 47,000 MW. This means that about 83,000 MW of power capacity will need to be built and put into operation by 2030. Along with that, investment in infrastructure for transmission and distribution will also be required.

To ensure energy security, it is necessary to mobilise solar energy resource, which is also an inevitable trend for every country. In that context, mobilising foreign investment and leveraging experiences, as well as advanced technologies from foreign partners to develop renewable energy sources is the right step forward.

Recently, the governments of Vietnam and Oman, through Vietnam-Oman Investment Fund (VOI), have realised the goal of promoting cooperation in the field of renewable energy development by the inauguration of BCG-CME Long An 1 solar power plant in Long An province on June 23. It is an important first step for efforts to promote cooperation between the two sides in this area towards sustainable development.

As a joint venture between Vietnam State Capital Investment Corporation (SCIC) and Oman State General Reserve Fund (SGRF), VOI is considered a good model of Oman's investment in Vietnam and a bridge for bilateral business cooperation, focusing on investing in growth industries with Vietnam's competitive advantage and contributing to its long-term sustainable economic development. VOI has disbursed more than US$200 million in nearly 10 years in electricity, sugar, water, infrastructure, education, agriculture and renewable energy in Vietnam, becoming a typical investment from the Middle East into the Southeast Asian country.

In the role of a strategic investor in the BCG-CME Long An 1 solar power plant, VOI has spent a large financial budget on this project, aiming to gradually reduce the dependence on the forms of traditional power generation to protect the environment for the sustainable development of Vietnam.

Advisor to the Omani Ministry of Finance cum Chairman of the VOI Advisory Council, Abdulmalik-Abdullah Zahir Al Hinai, speaks at the inauguration of the BCG-CME Long An 1 solar plant.

According to Abdulmalik-Abdullah Zahir Al Hinai, Advisor to the Omani Ministry of Finance cum Chairman of the VOI Advisory Council, investments in renewable energy and clean energy is one of Oman’s main objectives. It has set a goal of diversifying energy supplies and by 2030, 30% of electricity demand is expected to be supplied by renewable energy sources.

Oman praises the initiatives of the Government of Vietnam in promoting and incentivising investments in renewable energy, especially wind and solar energy. As the investment cost of renewable energy continues to decline, Vietnam's efforts in reducing carbon emissions from electricity production is expected to continue to accelerate.

With experience and commitment in addressing climate change issues and supporting the transition to a greener economy, while reducing the carbon footprint, Oman through VOI pledges to work closely with Vietnam in lowering their dependence on fossil fuels and increasing the output share of renewable energy in the coming years.

Following BCG-CME Long An 1 solar energy plant, VOI and partners are soon to continue to invest and build other large-scale renewable energy projects in Vietnam and in Long An in particular, with an estimated total capacity up to 190 MW, which is expected to significantly contribute to the strategic goal of making Vietnam a clean energy giant in a very short time.

The BCG-CME Long An 1 solar energy plant is built on an area of 50.2 ha, with a capacity of 40.6 MWp, at a total investment of over VND1 trillion (US$43.2 million) invested by Bamboo Capital Group (BCG), Copper Mountain Energy (CME) and VOI. The project includes 123,000 solar panels to generate an output of 57 million kWh a year, nearly equal to the annual electricity consumption of 22,000 households in Vietnam, and an estimated CO2 emission reduction of about 16,000 tonnes a year.