Target of reducing at least 30% of peak load capacity
The Vietnamese Government has approved the National Program on power demand management for the period 2018-2020 with the orientation to 2030. In which, DR is the central program. Through the DR Program, Vietnam strives to reduce at least 30% of the peak-load capacity of its national power system, corresponding to at least 90MW and 300MW by 2020 and 2025 respectively.
So why is DR considered as an urgent solution for the energy sector today? ERAV’s data on the study of power system's load chart in 8,760 hours of Ho Chi Minh city shows that the peak load of the system (90 - 100% Pmax) only appears in less than 2% of the total duration of the year. However, many large investments in developing power plants, grid systems and other related infrastructure to meet the peak load have put a direct pressure on the prices of power production.
The DR program encourages customers to proactively adjust or change their power demand during the peak hours. As a result, maximum capacity of the power system is reduced, preventing overload on grids, contributing to improving the economic efficiency of the power system. Also, the program will create conditions for the community to raise their awareness of power saving and efficient use of power, contributing to protecting the country's resources.
Quang Ninh Power Company signing DR agreements with customers
An attractive encouragement mechanism in need
Mr. Tran Viet Nguyen – EVN’s Deputy Chairman of Business Board, said that in order to deploy this Program, Vietnam Electricity has performed forecasts of the system's load, analyzed samples and calculated the base load of large customers (4,500 EVN’s customers are key energy users). EVN's power companies have been actively performing propaganda and helping customers understand about the benefits and importance of the Program. At the same time, they also coordinate with People's Committees of provinces and cities to propagandize and mobilize customers to voluntarily participate in non-commercial DR.
To increase the attractiveness of the Program, EVN has also implemented many customer-care solutions, particularly practice the preferential treatment in improving the reliability of power supply and the quality of power services for customers who sign to participate in DR. Up to now, more than 60% of target customers have signed agreements to join DR. However, the reality shows that Vietnam has implemented the non-commercial DR Program only, meaning that customers have not directly received financial benefits when participating in the program. Therefore, even though customers sign such agreements, when EVN announces the implementation of a DR event, some customers were not enthusiastic, even refused to attend the event with the reason of "being afraid" to change and adjust their production plans. .
The non-commercial DR program is based entirely on the voluntary participation of customers. We do not have any provisions with specific benefits, so it is difficult to attract customers to participate in and commit to the program for a long time.
Reportedly, EVN has made a proposal to the Ministry of Industry and Trade to soon promulgate financial and commercial mechanisms to encourage the implementation of DR program. A specific financial mechanism is the only solution for Vietnam’s DR market to "welcome" a large number of participants, making an important contribution to improving the effectiveness in implementing this program.