Asian Bank Funds US$205 Mln to Help Vietnam Upgrade Power Grids

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has recently given a nod to a project worth US$205 million funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to develop renewable energy sources, expand and upgrade national electricity grid systems in the country's' remote areas, the Vietnam News Agency reported.

 

Regarding potential for developing renewable energy sources, Vietnam is now listed among the world’s 14 countries abundant in hydraulic power potentials with over 500 small hydropower plants with a combined capacity of 135 MW.

 

Experts from the World Bank (WB) estimated that the country with coastal line of more than 3,000 kilometers will have the wind-to-power potential of 513,000 megawatts, the greatest capacity in Southeast Asia.

 

Another project to upgrade power grids in rural areas of 20 cities and provinces in the southern region with an investment of over VND560 billion (US$35 million) funded by the World Bank is under implementation by Power Company No. 2 (PC2) with an expected for completion within this year.

 

The company is also planning to spend nearly VND2 trillion (US$125 million) to develop power grids in southern mountainous and island areas in the near future. (Vietnam & World Economy)