General – Power Plants Vietnam
Vietnam’s prime minister approved a long-awaited power plan for this decade that needs $134.7 billion of funding for new power plants and grids.
The plan, known as PDP8, is aimed at ensuring energy security for the Southeast Asian country while it begins the transition from its current heavy reliance on coal to becoming carbon-neutral by mid-century.
Amid internal squabbles and work on complex reforms, the plan has been delayed for more than two years, and has seen a dozen of draft versions before the approval by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, which now needs the formal green light from the rubber-stamp parliament, possibly this month, before its final adoption.
The plan is important to unlock an initial investment of $15.5 billion in green-transition funds pledged to Vietnam in December by the Group of 7 (G7) nations and other wealthier countries. Half of the funds will come from the public sector and the rest from private investors.
The industry ministry, which prepared the document, said in a statement that half of office buildings and homes in Vietnam would be powered by rooftop solar panels by 2030. The country would also aim to generate green energy for exports, with a target of 5-10 gigawatts (GW) by 2030.
The statement did not provide full details of the plan.
