Vietnam Seeks Alternative Energy Sources
Vietnam’s engineers and scientists are carrying out research into building small hydropower stations, solar energy heaters, solar panels and cells, household wind turbines and bio-gas systems with the aim at providing electricity for all households by 2010.
Vietnam, which has five large-scale solar power systems with a daily solar radiation of 4-5 kWh, plans to increase its combined electricity capacity of bio-mass, geo- thermal, wind and solar energy stations as well as small hydropower generators to between 1,091 MW and 2,000 MW in the next five years from its current 160-215 MW generation, according to the Energy Institute in Hanoi.
The country will build three major electricity plants using solar energy in the next 2-4 years, while 10 power systems fueled by solar energy and diesel, with capacity of 10 kW each, are under construction. It is also expected to construct several large solar and wind power stations in the central highland provinces of Dak Lak and Gia Lai and the central Khanh Hoa province with assistance from such countries as Japan, Germany and Switzerland.
A total of 50 wind turbines have also been installed in the Can Gio district of Ho Chi Minh City with the support from France’s Agency for the French-Speaking Community (ACCT)
Electricity of Vietnam, the country's biggest electricity producer, is considering to jointly build a 20-MW wind power generator in central Khanh Hoa province with German organisation, Ventis. A further wind turbine with capacity of 30 MW and funded by Japan investors has been proposed for central Binh Dinh province.
In addition to solar and wind energy, Vietnam is paying attention to other sources such as bio-mass and small-sized hydropower. US and British investors are expected to pour US$106 million into building a bio-mass plant in Ho Chi Minh City, which will process nearly one million tons of rubbish to turn out 15 MW of electricity and 480,000 tons of NPK fertilizers each year.
Vietnam plans to build 300,000 bio-gas tanks in rural areas nationwide by 2010 to create gas for daily use or small trade. It will also construct more small hydroelectric plants in rural and mountainous areas.
To date, over 800 wind-powered generators have been installed in 40 localities nationwide, and the Vietnamese government has financed the construction of 300 solar power projects for households on islands in the northern region. A US organization, SELF, has also funded a project to build 400 household power systems for people in the southern provinces of Tien Giang and Tra Vinh.
Vietnam now has more than 100,000 small hydroelectric stations in operation, and 400 others under construction with combined capacity of 30 MW, supplying electricity to over one million people. The country's combined capacity of all hydroelectric sources will rise to 8,800 MW by 2010 and 15,000 MW by 2020, turning out total electricity output of some 35 billion kWh and 60 billion kWh, respectively, according to the Ministry of Industry.
With the local energy demand estimated at 93-100 billion kWh in 2010, 200-230 billion kWh in 2020 and 625-766 billion kWh in 2050, Vietnam, which currently sells electricity to Laos and Cambodia, is expected to become an energy importer in 2013.
Besides importing electricity, the country will intensify exploitation of coal, oil, gas and rivers to build more thermal and hydropower plants, further tap alternative energy sources, including wind, solar and nuclear power, and increase its efficiency of energy use, especially by industry and transport, and residents, said the ministry.
According to a recent report by the World Bank, access to electricity has increased rapidly in the 82-million people in Vietnam, from about 51 per cent in 1996 to more than 80 per cent at the household level in 2003, but there are still around 3.5 million households without access to electricity. Rural people often suffer from low voltage and poor reliability electricity networks.
VNS
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