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Power plants told to prepare for next year’s surging power needs
The North of Vietnam would likely fall short of around 200 million kWh of electricity in the dry season of 2009, Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang revealed recently.
Next year, many challenges were likely to arrive, and the power sector must plan ahead, he said at a working session.
Hoang stressed that the most important thing for the power sector was to raise its total power generating capacity to 18,000MW in 2009 to meet growing demands.
Electricity of Viet Nam (EVN)’s General Director Pham Le Thanh estimates that the country will consume over 41 billion kWh in the dry season and 87 kWh in the whole year.
From now to the end of the year, EVN plans to put more than 10 power plants into operation with a combined capacity of 3,000MW. The new electricity sources include A Vuong, Pleikrong, Ba Ha, Ban Ve, Se San 4, An Khe Kanak, Hai Phong 1, Quang Ninh 1 and O Mon 1 power plants.
EVN’s target to raise its capacity by 14 per cent was reasonable compared to the anticipated economic growth of 7 per cent, Hoang said.
The minister asked EVN to be more efficient in developing a suitable maintenance schedule for power plants to avoid closing down several major plants at the same time.
The sector was told to meet essential needs of production and daily life of the people while ensuring electricity quality and safety, he said.
EVN Chairman Dao Van Hung said the group still worried about its capability to supply enough electricity in face of difficulties in financing power projects which are scheduled to be completed in 2009.
The group still needs VND8.1 trillion ($480 million) for current projects underway. Recent increases in interest rates and rising building costs are making the projects more expensive
EVN also faces difficulties in raising capital for itself. EVN should have equitised by now 11 subsidiary companies but because of the sluggish stock market, the initial public offering have been delayed.
According to Thanh, demand for commercial electricity this year is predicted to reach 67.29 billion kWh, 15.16 per cent higher than last year.
Next year, total electricity volume produced and imported will be 86.67 billion kWh, 66 per cent of which produced by EVN.
VNN
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