The Ministry of Industry and Trade has just sent to the Government a draft decree regulating policies to encourage self-produced and self-consumed rooftop solar power after consulting with Government members.

In this document, the Ministry of Industry and Trade maintains the viewpoint of encouraging the development of self-produced and self-consumed solar power installed on the roofs of construction works including: houses, offices, industrial parks, industrial clusters, export processing zones, high-tech zones, economic zones, production facilities, and business establishments invested and built in accordance with the law.

The new draft clearly stipulates that Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) is the sole buyer. Therefore, taking advantage of regulations on developing self-produced and self-consumed rooftop solar power to sell electricity to organizations and individuals other than EVN will be considered an illegal act.

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EVN will be the only unit allowed to buy self-produced and self-consumed rooftop solar power. Photo: Nam Khanh

The report also stated that, after many revisions, the Ministry of Industry and Trade is consistent with these two forms of power source development: through the grid and off the grid.

Accordingly, organizations and individuals do not need to register before installing rooftop solar power if they do not connect to the national power system. Instead, they only need to send a notice and design documents to the construction management agency, fire prevention and fighting agency, local electricity unit and local Department of Industry and Trade for monitoring.

Rooftop solar power connected to the national power grid must be registered according to regulations. Organizations and individuals can choose to generate or not generate surplus electricity to the national power grid.

For systems with an installed capacity of 100kW or more, organizations and individuals are responsible for negotiating and reaching an agreement with the buyer of surplus electricity on equipment and means of connection to the collection, monitoring and control system of the distribution dispatch level to ensure safe operation of the national power system.

Households and individual houses developing rooftop solar power with a capacity of less than 100kW are allowed to develop unlimited total capacity nationwide.

Organizations and individuals who install self-produced and self-consumed rooftop solar power with a capacity of less than 1,000kW do not have to register their capacity with the Department of Industry and Trade, but only notify relevant parties for monitoring.

Regarding the electricity sales regulations in the new draft, the incentive policy proposed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade for the off-grid type is to prioritize unlimited capacity development and exemption from electricity operating licenses. Meanwhile, projects connected to the grid will be given priority and will not have to make adjustments or supplement energy land and functions according to the provisions of law.

Organizations installing systems with a capacity of 1MW or more and choosing to sell electricity privately must carry out procedures to request a power operation license. Other cases are exempted.

Notably, systems with a capacity of less than 100kW, if not fully used, will be sold to the national electricity system, but not more than 20% of the actual installed capacity.

The purchase price of surplus electricity is equal to the average market electricity price in the previous year announced by the electricity system and electricity market operator, the Ministry of Industry and Trade said.

Looking at what is happening with solar and wind power today, to say that renewable energy will be the driving force and pillar in the next 10 years, perhaps we are being a bit subjective, experts commented.