Mr. Hoang Quoc Vuong - Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade; Mr. Nguyen Quan - Chairman of Vietnam Automation Association, former Minister of Science and Technology; Assoc. Prof. Tran Dinh Thien - member of Economic Advisory team of the Prime Minister, former Director of Vietnam Institute of Economics co-chaired the Forum.
According to Deputy Minister Hoang Quoc Vuong, it is projected that from now to 2030, Vietnam’s economy will continue to grow at a high rate (from 6.5 to 7%/year), leading to the rapid increase in energy demand. The commercial power output is projected to reach nearly 500 billion kWh by 2030 (190 billion kWh in 2017).
Rapid increase in energy demand is a great challenge for Vietnam when primary energy sources have already completely mined or been exhausted. Additionally, an increasingly high requirement on environmental protection also put a significant pressure on energy supply.
Vietnam Energy Forum is a destination to acknowledge opinions from management agencies, experts and scientists towards the target of ensuring national energy security
Attending the Forum, Mr. Ngo Son Hai - Deputy General Director of Vietnam Electricity (EVN) said: The power industry really need to produce 265 - 278 billion kWh in 2020 and about 572 - 632 billion kWh in 2030. The growth rate of power demand in the period if 2016 - 2020 is about 10.3 - 11.3%/year, in the period of 2021 – 2030, it is about 8.0 - 8.5%/year. These are the great challenges facing the Group.
One of the key solutions to ensure power supply for socio-economic development, as proposed by EVN, is to ensure the progress of power source projects be put into operation under adjusted Power Planning VII. Sufficient supply of gas for power generation is to be ensured. At the same time, there is a mechanism prepared for the price range for purchasing power from Laos, accelerate the negotiation with this country to collect power sources in Southern Laos and connection lines for the purpose of importing power to Vietnam through the existing 220kV transmission lines, etc.
Deputy General Director Ngo Son Hai also mentioned solutions to control load demand, enhance safe - save – effective power use, encourage the development of solar power, etc.
Mr. Ngo Son Hai - Deputy General Director of EVN speaking at forum
According to Assoc. Prof. Tran Dinh Thien - Former Director of Vietnam Institute of Economics, over the last time, MOIT and EVN have successfully ensured power supply for socio-economic development. Particularly, the MOIT, as the status of the Ministry in charge of sector management, has prepared many solutions for sustainable energy development in conducting both power source planning and implementing the Law on save, effective energy use and the National targets for save and effective energy use.
In the long term, the problem of supply-demand balance should be solved, the benefits among the State – the investors and the power users, between management and consumption, social security, as well as issues of sustainable environment, responding to the climate change should be properly harmonized.
Acknowledging the opinions of experts and scientists at the Forum, Deputy Minister Hoang Quoc Vuong said that in order to deal with the challenges, one of the issues that need to be paid high attention to is appropriate development in the energy sector among coal, oil and gas. Simultaneously, specific mechanisms to accelerate the progress of new power source projects, as well as to promote developing renewable energy should be worked out; appropriate policies on electricity prices should be prepared, people and enterprises should safely and efficiently use power. All things are done with the final target of ensuring energy security associated with sustainable development and environmental protection.