The Prime Minister has recently approved a development strategy for the coal industry in the 2006-2015 period, and development orientations for the industry until 2025. This is to promote a stable and sustainable development for the industry, meeting the requirement of the country’s international integration and the development of other industries.
Accordingly, the strategy will outline major tasks for the coal industry, such as the building and development of a modern, synchronous and economical technical system; the protection of the environment; the processing, distribution, import and export of coal to meet maximally the demand for coal for Vietnam’s socio-economic development, making a contribution to national energy security.
Firstly, the Vietnam National Coal and Mineral Industries Group (Vinacomin) will concentrate on the building and development of a modern, synchronous and economical technical system, and scientific and technological application to the exploration, exploitation, sorting, processing and usage of coal.
To this end, the local coal industry will strive to complete the exploration and evaluation of coal reserves from bellow 300 metres to the bottom of the Quang Ninh coal pool by 2010, while exploring part of a coal pool in the Red River delta. The industry will strive to complete the exploration and evaluation of coal reserves in the Red River delta’s pool by 2015.
Accordingly, the industry has set a target of between 46 million tonnes and 51 million tonnes of coal which can be exploited in 2010; between 50 million tonnes and 55 million tonnes in 2015; between 57 million tonnes and 62 million tonnes in 2020; and around 68 million tonnes in 2025.
At present, the industry has five large-sized open-cast mines with capacity of around two million tonnes of coal per annum, 15 medium-sized open-cast mines and exploiting works with a capacity of between 100,000 tonnes and one million tonnes per annum, let alone more than 30 underground mines, eight of which have a large scale and reserves with almost complete technology and infrastructure facilities, with a capacity of more than one million tonnes per year. Other underground mines have a capacity of less than one million tonnes per annum. It is reported that from 1995 to 2005, the coal industry has paid attention to the exploration work. From 1995 to 2003 alone, the Vietnam National Coal Corporation (Vinacomin today) invested VND 230.7 billion in exploration with a volume of land drilled for the purpose of 169,438 cubic metres.
Secondly, the coal industry should work out a strategy for an effective and economical exploitation, processing and usage of coal in combination with the import and export activities, targeting a stop of the export of coal. The industry will strive to meet the local demand for coal for Vietnam’s socio-economic development. Measures will be implemented synchronously for an effective management of coal, striving for reducing the industry’s loss to less than 30 per cent in 2015 and to less than 25 per cent in 2025.
In exploitation, the industry will exploit and use effectively and economically coal resources for a long-term usage purpose, striving to produce a volume of between 40 million and 43 million tonnes of clean coal in 2010, between 48 million and 51 tonnes in 2015, around 58 million tonnes in 2020, and between 58 million and 61 million tonnes in 2025, bringing its total volume of clean coal to around 200 million tonnes in 2050.
The industry will cut its export volume to 12 million tonnes in 2010, five million tonnes in 2015, and gradually stop exporting coal after 2015. Vinacomin will promote its investment in overseas exploration and exploitation for supplement the shortage of the exploitation of local mines.
Thirdly, Vinacomin will promote its investment in other fields, such as the construction and operation of coal-run thermo-electric power plants, exploiting bauxite, producing alumin in the Central Highlands and the central coastal region. The group will turn the production of industrial dynamid, cement, construction glass, engine manufacturing, truck manufacturing and assembly as its spearhead activities, and boost trade, tourist and maritime services.
Finally, Vinacomin will combine its production development with the environmental protection and socio-economic and tourism development, as well as national security and defence. The group will build a safety centre, installing automated CH4 gas warning systems for its member companies, modernising the emergency centres in three regions, and upgrading emergency facilities in mines. It has set a regulation that each mine should have a deputy director in charge of safety work from 2005.
At the same time, to overcome the aftermath of downgraded environment in mines, and to protect landscapes and cultural and historical relic sites in Quang Ninh province, Vinacomin has implemented a programme on evaluating environmental impacts of the coal production region in Quang Ninh and has worked out solutions and programmes. Accordingly, investment capital for environmental protection increased from VND 47.98 billion in 2003 to VND 69.91 billion in 2004, and VND 208.9 billion in 2006.
The general director of Vinacomin has pledged with authorities of Quang Ninh province it would put an end to coal transportation by cars and stop the transportation of coal in the Ha Long bay by the end of 2006.
To protect the environment, all facilities for coal exploitation, sorting, processing and usage will have to meet the industry’s environmental standards.
In the 1995-2005 period, especially between 2000-2005, Vietnam’s coal industry witnessed a rapid development in its output and production scale:
- Total volume of clean coal increased from 8.35 million tonnes in 1995 to 32.6 million tonnes in 2005, or an average increase of 14.6 per cent per annum.
- Export volume and prices saw a strong rise from 2.78 million tonnes and US$95 million to 17.88 million tonnes and US$658 million, respectively.
Kim Phuong
Vietnamese
