Vietnam approves $383mil power plant project

The Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) has won government approval to invest VND5.92 trillion (US$383 million) to build a 300-megawatt hydro power plant in Ban La of central Nghe An province.

Construction is slated to start late this year and generators will be operational in 2008.

The Prime Minister approved a masterplan in April involving 62 power plant projects for construction between this year and 2011 to meet increasing demand from private businesses and households.

EVN will develop 32 of the projects at a cost of US$22.5 billion over the next 10 years, half of which would be sourced from local and foreign banks.

State-owned Electricity of Vietnam Corp., or EVN, plans to build a 600-megawatt natural gas-fueled power plant in O Mon district in the southern province of Can Tho this year, an EVN official said Thursday.

Construction of the plant, which is called O Mon 1 and will include two 300MW gas turbines, will cost around US$550 million, funded mainly by Japan's official development assistance and partly by EVN 's own sources, the official at EVN's International Relations Department said.

"EVN has received a financial guarantee from the Japanese government for the first turbine, and is hoping to receive another guarantee for the second turbine," he said.

The O Mon 1 plant is expected to be operational in 2005 or 2006, using natural gas sourced from Vietnam's PM3 offshore gas field which is 290 kilometres southwest from Ca Mau province.

The official said EVN is also continuing a study on construction in the O Mon district of another gas-fired power plant, called O Mon 2, which will have a generation capacity of 750MW.

The Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) will invest in the construction of 28 power plants to raise capacity by 9,600MW to meet growing electricity demand.

EVN officials said that the new power plants would comprise 18 hydro-power plants, with total capacity of 4,000MW, and 10 thermal power plants, with total capacity of 5,600MW. The electricity sector will also install thousands of kilometres of electrical cables, transformer stations, and expand the electrical distribution network across the country.

EVN will invest VND10 trillion (US$665 million) in the Ho Chi Minh City's electricity system to increase supply capacity from 25.5 million kWh a day to 64.6 million kWh a day over the next seven years.

The investments will improve quality of service, and ensure sufficient supplies to HCM City residents during the peak period of the dry season.

The state-owned Electricity of Vietnam Corp. (EVN) has begun a project worth US$305 million to expand the Uong Bi Thermopower Plant in Quang Ninh province, Vietnam News Agency reported Tuesday.

The coal-fired plant is located in a coal-rich area 150 kilometers northeast of Hanoi.

EVN has signed a contract with another state-owned company, Vietnam Machinery Installation Corp., or Lilama, for expanding the power plant's capacity to 400 megawatts from the current 100 MW, it said. The expansion work will be completed in three years, the report said.

Vietnam has four coal-fired power plants with a combined generation capacity of 1,245 MW and is planning to raise its coal-fired power supply to 3,200 MW by 2010.

Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) will start constructing the Dai Ninh Hydro-Electricity Plant Saturday this week in the southern province of Binh Thuan. The 300MW-capacity plant will supply power to Binh Thuan and the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong.

Japan's Official Development Assistance fund will cover 85% of the plant's US$440 million construction with the remainder coming from domestic bank loans.

EVN's Project Management Board split the construction into eight packages, two of which have already been awarded.

The Dai Ninh Plant is one of nine hydro-electric plants to begin construction in Vietnam this year.

The U.S. Trade and Development Agency will provide a US$320,000 grant to Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) for a feasibility study on a project on automated mapping, facilities-management and geographical information system (AM/FM/GIS).

The agreement was signed in Hanoi on Tuesday by the U.S embassy deputy chief of mission Robert C.Porter Jr and EVN general director Dao Van Hung.

The study will start in August and be completed in July 2004. It aims to assess the possibility of applying information technology in EVN's management.

The US agency has so far provided US$8.5 million in grants to Vietnam for projects supporting infrastructure development. The projects have been conducted in such areas as environmental protection, transportation, information technology, energy and telecommunication development.

The Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) will consider a plan to equitize a number of power plants in the country, the Deputy General Director of EVN Pham Le Thanh has revealed.

The move is expected to help the state-owned corporation mobilize more capital for its development plan, according to Thanh. To match the rising demand for power in Vietnam under industrialization and modernization, EVN needs some US$22.5 billion for the next decade, he said.

For the near future, EVN will call on large corporations and companies to invest in big power projects. Investments could be in different forms including joint ventures and joint-stock companies.

Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) is making its proposal in adjustment of power sale prices in an attempt to manage a reasonable distribution of power for life and production.

It is planed that power sale price is to be different in seasons: the price in the raining season is higher than in the dry one. Besides, EVN will increase power price during "rush hours" to reduce the demanding pressure.

Particularly, EVN is to apply a unified power price for both Vietnamese clients and foreigners.　

Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) on Sunday broke ground on the country's second 500-kV electric transmission line from Pleiku in the Central Highlands of Phu Lam in Ho Chi Minh City to make electricity supply between northern and southern parts of the country more efficient. The 544-km long Pleiku-Phu Lam transmission line, scheduled to be completed in late 2003, is estimated to cost VND2,048 billion (US$150 million), of which the World Bank has pledged US$98 million.

When operational, the project will ensure transmission of electricity from the 720-MW Yaly hydro-electric plant to southern provinces and link with electric sources generated from Ham Thuan-Da Mi, Song Hinh and Dai Ninh hydro-electric plants, reducing the burden of the overloaded 500-KV North-South transmission line.

Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) has annouced that it is asking the government to allow the opening of an international bidding for the construction of the US$200 million Phu My 4 power plant. The corporation had earlier decided to appoint the German company Siemens to be the sole contractor for the plant, but Siemens had not yet submitted it plans, said Dinh Quang Tri, deputy general director of EVN.

The 150-megawatt Phu My 4, a part of the 3,600 megawatt Phu My power complex in southern Vung Tau province, is to be fired with gas pumped from the offshore Nam Con Son gas project.

EVN plans to arrange finance for the project from domestic banks but sources said this would be unworkable as funds now are needed for several power plants including the multi-billion Son La hydro power plant.

…approved the pre-feasibility study to build the Ca Mau power plant in An Khanh Commune, U Minh District in the southernmost province of Ca Mau.

The project, worth VND5,772 billion (US$384.8 million), aims to consume the exploited gas, develop the power sector and boost the socio-economic development in the Cuu Long (Mekong) River Delta.

The gas turbine will be put into use by the first quarter of 2005, while the steam turbine will be fully operational by the fourth quarter of that year.

Petro Viet Nam has been assigned to be the principal investor and manager of the project.

Document 1333/QD-TTg dated October 8, 2001.

…approved the pre-feasibility report which will result in the project to build the Buon Kuop Churong hydropower plant on Spepok River in the Tay Nguyen (Central Highlands) province of Dac Lac.

The project will help to provide electricity and water for farming production in the downstream regions of Krong Ana and Krong Kno districts.

Electricity of Viet Nam was assigned to conduct the feasibility study.

Document 916/CP-CN dated October 8, 2001.

…directed the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau’s People’s Committee to move quickly on site clearance work for its gas-electricity-fertiliser project.

Local authorities were also asked to make thorough preparations for the resettlement of affected households on the site.

The PM also assigned neighbouring provinces, including Dong Nai, Long An and HCM City, to finalise compensation and site clearance for the projects to build the 220-500KV power line and substations which will serve the gas-electricity-fertiliser industrial zone in Ba Ria-Vung Tau.

Document 126/TB-VPCP dated September 27, 2001.

...given authority to the Song Da Construction Corporation to raise capital to conduct a feasibility study for the project to build Nam Chien Hydro-power Plant. The Ministry of Industry will be responsible for guiding the corporation during the implementation of the project.

Document 2791/VPCP- CN dated June 22, 200 1.

The PM has also authorised Electricity of Viet Nam to carry out the bidding packages Checking and destroying bombs, mines or explosive materials in the construction sites and Dredging the   mud from canals, ditches in preparation for the building of the Phu My I Hydro-power Plant.

Document 556/CP- CN dated June 2, 2001.

VNA- A US $1.625-million contract to provide consultancy services to a project on expanding the Uong Bi Thermal Power Plant has been signed between the project's management board and a consultancy group of Japan.

Under the contract, the group, represented by Japan's Electrical Power development Company, will cover consultancy services on technical design, cost estimates, and invitation for bidding on design, equipment provision, and construction.

Construction of the plant with a designed capacity of 300 megawatts is expected to start in early 2002 and to finish in 2005.

The plant is designed to consume about one million tonnes of coal and produce two billion kilowatt hours a year.

VASC Orient