Responding to the message of Earth Hour 2025

The recent Earth Hour 2025 event attracted millions of people around the world to turn off lights and unnecessary electrical equipment. With the message "Green transition - green future", the campaign not only calls for saving electricity, but also aims at a broader goal of encouraging sustainable energy production activities, increasing the use of renewable energy, promoting the application of energy-saving products and equipment, contributing to improving energy efficiency in both economic and environmental aspects.

The 518 kWp rooftop solar power project at Nghi Son 2 BOT Thermal Power Plant (Nghi Son Economic Zone) has just been successfully installed.

According to statistics on national electricity consumption of the National Electricity System and Market Operation Company Limited, after 1 hour of turning off the lights in response to the Earth Hour Campaign 2025 (from 20:30 to 21:30 on March 22, 2025), the whole country saved 448,000 kWh of electricity, equivalent to more than 942 million VND. It is known that since the Earth Hour Campaign was implemented in Vietnam, Thanh Hoa has been one of the pioneering localities responding to this movement, contributing to creating positive changes in people's awareness and actions on energy saving and environmental protection.

Nghi Son 2 BOT Thermal Power Plant (Nghi Son Economic Zone) has just successfully installed a 518 kWp rooftop solar power project integrated with a 1,152 kWh battery energy storage system (BESS) and a microgrid control system. According to a representative of Nghi Son 2 Power Company Limited, the project is designed to take advantage of the abundant solar radiation available in the area, helping businesses manage energy optimally; at the same time, allowing the storage of excess electricity generated during hours of high solar radiation for reuse during times of high demand or low solar radiation. This combination also demonstrates the company's commitment to applying advanced technology to maximize the use of renewable energy; directly contributing to the goals of reducing dependence on traditional fossil fuels and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

In garment factories in the province, with hundreds of machines and equipment operating at the same time, and every stage in the production process consuming a certain amount of electricity, many enterprises have also converted equipment according to energy-saving criteria and invested in rooftop solar power systems. This helps enterprises significantly reduce monthly electricity costs, while minimizing CO2 emissions into the environment, moving towards green production, facilitating the export of goods.

Many households are also switching to solar power, helping to reduce monthly electricity bills and bring long-term benefits, protecting the environment. Ms. Nguyen Thi Linh's family in Dong Ve ward, Thanh Hoa city has an average electricity bill of 3 million VND/month. Investing in installing a 4.4 kWp solar power system with a cost of nearly 80 million VND, her family's electricity bill has decreased by 1.5 - 2 million VND per month. On sunny summer days, Ms. Linh's family hardly has to use grid electricity.

It is known that with many implemented solutions, in 2024, the whole province saved 174 million kWh. However, climate change and the tendency of the earth to warm up have led to an increasing demand for energy. Therefore, joining hands to save energy is becoming an urgent issue. Each agency, unit, enterprise, and person in the province needs to proactively change their electricity usage habits, from small things such as turning off electrical equipment when not in use, replacing incandescent bulbs with energy-saving LED lights, to investing in renewable energy equipment, all contribute significantly to ensuring energy security for sustainable development.

Mr. Hoang Xuan Phong, Director of the Center for Industrial Promotion and Energy Conservation, Department of Industry and Trade, said: “The Center is continuing to research and deploy effective energy-saving solutions and projects. Currently, 13 projects investing in lighting systems using energy-saving LED lights with a total investment of 43 billion VND have been approved for investment in late 2024 and are being actively implemented by localities. With strong communication coordination, we expect that responding to Earth Hour in Thanh Hoa province will not only be an event at a certain time, but also strongly spread the message "Saving electricity - Becoming a habit" according to Directive No. 20/CT-TTg of the Prime Minister on promoting electricity saving in the period of 2023-2025 and the following years".

At Thanh Hoa Power Company, along with solutions for optimal grid operation, technical management, and grid investment to reduce power loss, the unit is continuing to proactively coordinate with local authorities and media agencies to strongly promote the message of economical electricity use to customers. "We have worked with major customers to implement load shifting at peak times; communicating to customers to continue developing rooftop solar power and renewable energy solutions to limit depleted fossil energy sources," said Mr. Hoang Duc Hau, Deputy Director of Thanh Hoa Power Company.

Starting in Sydney, Australia in 2007, with more than 2 million participants, the Earth Hour campaign has now attracted the participation of nearly 200 countries and territories and billions of people worldwide. After many years of active participation, the Earth Hour campaign in Vietnam has spread strongly across the country, becoming a meaningful annual activity taking place every March. From propaganda and awareness raising, the campaign has now made an important contribution to transforming awareness into concrete actions, encouraging the community to practice saving electricity, using energy efficiently and protecting the environment.

Article and photos: Tung Lam

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/tiet-kiem-nang-luong-huong-ung-thong-diep-gio-trai-dat-2025-243509.htm