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EVN to issue bonds to pay debts
Electricity of Viet Nam (EVN) plans to issue VND9 trillion (US$428.6 million) in bonds with a maturity duration ranging from three to five years to pay debts incurred from electricity business, said deputy director Dinh Quang Tri.
At a Monday workshop held by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, EVN reported incurring losses of VND3.181 trillion (US$151.5 million) in 2011 and VND8 trillion ($381 million) in 2010.
EVN said that the losses were attributed to disadvantageous hydrology, which affected both power generation and supply in the dry season of 2011, as well as the fluctuating exchange rate and rising input costs.
Tri said that EVN would see profits of about VND3.5 trillion ($166.7 million) from the hydroelectricity business this year, which would make up for the company's previous losses.
EVN also expected profits next year, he added.
At the workshop, the Electricity Regulatory Authority said that the electricity business suffered losses of VND56 per kWh on average by the time it reached the final consumer, and costs not attributed to electricity prices totalled VND26.7 trillion ($1.28 billion) as of the end of 2011.
Deputy Minister Le Duong Quang said that an electricity price increase would be unavoidable because the current prices were still low.
Under the EVN's five-year development plan approved by the Prime Mnister, the electricity price would be increased to achieve market-oriented pricing in 2013.
Director of the Electricity Regulatory Authority Dang Huy Cuong said that any adjustments to the electricity price plan in the 2013-15 period would be carefully considered in order to minimise impacts on production and people's lives. Meanwhile, deputy president of the Viet Nam Standards and Consumers Association Do Gia Phan said that the electricity market-oriented pricing to be applied in 2013 was too rushed because a competitive electricity distribution market would be barely formed by next year.
According to EVN, electricity yields stood at 9.6 billion kWh in November, an increase of 10.4 per cent compared to last November. For the 11-month period, yields were estimated at 105.1 billion kWh, a 13.4 per cent rise over the same period last year.
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