Vietnam's largest hydropower plant to get $377 mil boost

Vietnam is planning to splash out VND8.6 trillion ($377 million) on the country's largest hydropower plant in Hoa Binh Province for an expansion project under a decision recently signed by Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung.

The plan will add two new power units in order to increase output capacity for the national power grid.

Vietnam Electricity Corporation will pay for 30 percent of the project, while the other 70 percent will come from commercial loans.

Power shortages are a perennial headache in the country.

Southern Vietnam will likely experience a shortfall of power in 2018 and 2019, the Saigon Times quoted Deputy Prime Minister Dung as saying last year.

In a bid to boost Vietnam’s power supply, the government has asked local producers to step up their effort to develop renewable energy.

However, in comparison to traditional energy sources, renewable energy is still relatively new in Vietnam. High installation costs and relatively low power prices have been discouraging investors from entering Vietnam’s wind energy market. 

In a long-awaited decision last May, PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc approved a tariff hike for the purchase of electricity from grid-connected solar power plants to attract potential investors.

Launched in 1994, Hoa Binh is the largest renewable power generator in Southeast Asia, providing 27 percent of the country’s total power output.