The most feared is the lack of electricity because it will create a bottleneck from production to economy.

High electricity prices are not dead, but power outages are the problem

On October 31, the Government Electronic Information Portal held a discussion on "Calculating correctly and sufficiently to have appropriate electricity prices".

Mr. Phan Duc Hieu - Standing Member of the National Assembly's Economic Committee said that electricity prices need to ensure the harmonization of interests of all parties. Because the principle of electricity prices is to calculate correctly and sufficiently, along with other support policies for target groups.

"Therefore, it is necessary to clearly determine the actual electricity price. If it is calculated low, it will not attract investment, causing losses and inefficiency. From there, determine the electricity price mechanism to ensure competitiveness and attractiveness," said Mr. Hieu.

Seminar on electricity prices organized by the Government Electronic Information Portal - Photo: N.KH — Seminar on electricity prices organized by the Government Electronic Information Portal. Photo: VGP

Mr. Tran Dinh Thien - former Director of the Vietnam Economic Institute - said that to calculate correctly and fully, the market principle must be dominant and leading. For low-income groups, social policies need to have appropriate support mechanisms and be separate from the general electricity price, and should not allow EVN to suffer losses and risk bankruptcy.

“I have said that high electricity prices are not fatal, but power outages are. Pricing tools are tools that need to be used actively and effectively according to the market. Calculating correctly and sufficiently is an objective factor and leads to the development of the electricity industry,” said Mr. Thien.

Strive for enough electricity but cannot buy high and sell low, electricity prices must be reasonable

Mr. Nguyen Tien Thoa - former Director of the Price Management Department, Ministry of Finance said that the current electricity structure includes thermal power, hydropower and other power sources, of which the cheapest is hydropower (accounting for 28%) and the rest are high-cost power sources. Especially thermal power imports input materials such as coal, oil, and gas, which cannot have low prices.

For example, during the period when hydropower is at low water levels, we must mobilize high-priced resources to ensure the needs of the entire economy. If calculated correctly, when using oil to produce electricity, the cost of electricity will be up to 5,800 VND/kWh, coal is about 2,500 - 2,800 VND/kWh.

We cannot buy high and sell low due to dependence on input materials, but with the efforts of the State and the electricity industry to compensate for prices up to now, we still strive to provide enough electricity for the economy at prices that are not correct and not enough for the cost.

In the current electricity price is being processed for multiple purposes. If we consider income, we need to clarify what percentage of total income is currently accounted for by electricity costs? This is something that policy makers all calculate. Not to mention that electricity prices are also related to the planning of many other policies.

For vulnerable groups, the government can consider other support methods such as support beyond electricity bills so that everyone can use electricity.

“It is true that what we fear most is the lack of electricity, because the lack of electricity will create many bottlenecks from production to the economy. Attracting foreign investment into the grid and transmission without sufficient costs and profits will never come, and we cannot call for social security. If there is no electricity to go one step ahead, it will make the economy difficult,” said Mr. Thoa.

Agreeing, Mr. Ha Dang Son - an energy expert - expressed the need to look at the overall problem of electricity prices with the electricity market, when many investors assess that the Vietnamese market is no longer a "beautiful girl" and is not really attractive.

Therefore, Mr. Son recommends changing policy mechanisms and adjusting laws on attracting investment, including setting appropriate electricity purchase prices that are attractive enough to investors, ensuring low-risk investment, and linked to energy security...

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