Absolutely no power shortage, speed up progress of key projects in the electricity industry

(PLVN) - Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh signed Directive No. 1/CT-TTg dated January 3, 2025 on proactive solutions to ensure adequate electricity supply for production, business and people's lives during peak periods in 2025 and the 2026-2030 period.

The Directive clearly states that firmly ensuring national energy security and adequate electricity supply are among the fundamental factors ensuring the acceleration of the economic breakthrough and determining the cause of industrialization and modernization of the country in the coming time.

Provide enough electricity in all situations

Although 2024 will ensure electricity supply in the context of record heat, with system load at times reaching a record of more than 1 billion kWh/day, the Prime Minister said that electricity planning still has some shortcomings.

The implementation of power projects still faces many difficulties, so it is expected that the power source in this period will only reach 56.7% of the plan, posing a potential risk of power shortage.

With the requirement of striving for growth of over 8% in 2025 and double-digit growth in the period of 2026 - 2030, requiring electricity to grow 1.5 times, meaning that each year it is necessary to add 8,000 - 10,000 MW of electricity, this is a big challenge, requiring quick solutions to develop sources, especially clean electricity sources.

In order to proactively take early and remote solutions to ensure absolutely no power shortage in any case, the Prime Minister has instructed Ministers, Heads of agencies, Chairmen of People's Committees of provinces and centrally run cities, Chairmen and General Directors of Vietnam Electricity, Vietnam Oil and Gas Group, Vietnam National Coal and Mineral Industries Group, and Dong Bac Corporation to focus on implementing the task of providing enough electricity to serve socio-economic development in the period of 2025 - 2030, ensuring national energy security in the new era, the era of digital transformation, the era of national development.

On that basis, ministries, branches, agencies and localities need to promote the highest sense of responsibility, mobilize the entire political system, concentrate all resources to promote and promptly complete power source and transmission projects within their management scope. The authorities absolutely must not let projects and works be blocked due to slow handling of administrative procedures.

Ministries, branches and localities must also coordinate closely and effectively, seriously, resolutely and synchronously implement the tasks and solutions assigned in the Government's Resolutions, Directives, Official Dispatches, and directives of the Prime Minister on ensuring electricity supply for production, business and people's consumption in 2025 as well as the 2026-2030 period.

The Minister of Industry and Trade is responsible to the Government and the Prime Minister for ensuring adequate electricity supply in 2025 and the following years. The Ministry of Industry and Trade must direct more strongly, strengthen supervision, inspection, and monitoring, and regularly monitor developments in electricity demand as well as emerging factors to promptly provide appropriate and effective leadership and direction. At the same time, the Ministry must periodically review and report to the Prime Minister on implementation results every quarter.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade needs to focus on reviewing and studying the adjustment of the Power Plan VIII to promptly update the requirements and new strategic goals for socio-economic development. This review needs to update and supplement new power source projects, green, clean, sustainable power sources, and at the same time eliminate and replace projects that are behind schedule or not suitable for the country's development requirements, and complete before February 28, 2025.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade also needs to urgently complete the development and promulgation of legal documents detailing the Electricity Law No. 61/2024/QH15 before February 1, 2025 to promptly put the new policies of the Law into practice. In particular, mechanisms and policies related to long-term minimum contract electricity output, electricity prices and electricity service prices, mechanisms to ensure domestic gas consumption, and the principle of transferring fuel prices to electricity prices need to be carefully studied. Regulations need to both attract investment and ensure the harmony of investors' interests, the interests of the State, and the interests of the people, avoiding loss, waste, or group interests.

Speed ​​up the implementation of key and urgent projects of the electricity industry

At the same time, the Minister of Industry and Trade needs to give strong direction to accelerate the implementation of key and urgent projects of the electricity sector in the coming time. First, for power source projects included in the Power Plan VIII but without investors, the Ministry of Industry and Trade needs to request localities to urgently select investors for projects such as Nghi Son LNG, Quynh Lap LNG, Ca Na LNG and other similar projects, ensuring the completion of this work in the second quarter of 2025. After that, the projects need to accelerate investment progress to complete by the third quarter of 2028 at the latest.

For power source projects expected to be completed and put into operation in 2025, such as Nam Cum 4 Hydropower Plant, Hoa Binh MR, Nhon Trach 3, Nhon Trach 4, Vung Ang II, Quang Trach I (with unit 1 expected to be connected to the grid on September 2, 2025), the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the People's Committees of the provinces need to direct and urge investors to speed up the progress so that they can be put into operation 3 to 6 months earlier. Investors must have a clear commitment on the progress and specific operation time, and send a report to the Ministry of Industry and Trade before January 20, 2025.

For power source projects expected to be completed in the 2026-2030 period, including projects under construction such as Na Duong II, Quang Trach I, An Khanh - Bac Giang, Long Phu I, Hiep Phuoc phase 1, as well as projects that have investors and are preparing Feasibility Study Reports such as LNG Quang Ninh, LNG Thai Binh, Quang Trach II, Hai Lang phase 1, BOT Son My I, BOT Son My II, Bac Lieu, Long An I, O Mon II, III, IV..., the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the People's Committees of the provinces need to direct investors to urgently complete procedures to start construction and speed up progress. Investors also need to commit to a specific operating time, striving to complete 1 to 2 years earlier than planned. If necessary, the Ministry of Industry and Trade needs to study and propose appropriate mechanisms and policies to ensure these projects are implemented on schedule, especially in the 2026-2028 period.

In addition, the Ministry of Industry and Trade must focus on directing the implementation and completion of investment work for the Ninh Thuan Nuclear Power Plant project within 5 years.

Regarding power transmission, the Ministry of Industry and Trade needs to direct research and investment in the construction of power transmission projects according to the Power Plan VIII. These projects must focus on strengthening strong connections between regions, improving the safe and stable operation of the National Power System. In particular, priority should be given to implementing transmission projects to relieve capacity for power plants such as Nhon Trach 3 and 4. At the same time, urgently construct and complete the 500 kV Lao Cai - Vinh Yen line, put into operation in 2025 to relieve hydropower capacity in the Northern region and be ready to serve electricity imports from China if needed.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade also needs to focus on completing the 500 kV Monsoon – Thach My transmission line project in January 2025. In addition, it is necessary to study and propose investment policies for transmission line projects from hydropower projects in Laos to the northern provinces, to increase electricity imports from Laos in 2025, according to the Agreement signed between the two countries...

Source: https://baophapluat.vn/tuyet-doi-khong-de-thieu-dien-day-nhanh-tien-do-cac-du-an-trong-diem-nganh-dien-post536807.html