Millenium Oil and Gas Corporation Applied to Invest 15 Billion USD in Khanh Hoa

Millennium Oil and Gas Corporation (USA) proposed to invest in Vietnam energy sector with a liquefied gas power project in Nam Van Phong area, Khanh Hoa with a total investment of up to 15 billion USD.

After studying, Chairman of Millenium Vietnam Company (a member of Millenium Petroleum Group), if approved, they will invest in this project with a scale of 600ha, total investment capital of 15 billion USD, capacity of the power plant is 9,600MW.

In addition, Millenium Oil and Gas Group will invest in a port system to supply gas to power plants and LNG distribution agents for the whole of Southeast Asia. The location chosen by the investor is in My Giang village, Ninh Phuoc commune or maybe in Ninh Hai ward, Ninh Hoa town.

If the Khanh Hoa Provincial People’s Committee agrees to permit the investment, the project will be guaranteed by the US Government and will work with the Government of Vietnam to implement. The group hopes to turn the LNG terminal in southern Van Phong into the energy hub of Southeast Asia. Because Millenium is a corporation specializing in oil exploitation, it will sell gas directly to consumers without intermediaries, this is an advantage.

According to the Chairman of Khanh Hoa Provincial People’s Committee, the area of investors applying for investment in the power plant and LNG storage is totally consistent with the local development orientation.

It is known that Millenium Petroleum has 35 years of experience in implementing advanced power projects from natural gas, liquefied natural gas, wind, solar, geothermal and waste.

The Group has implemented power projects in the US and countries around the world with a total investment of more than 36 billion USD. At the same time, the group is also the unit that holds many of the world’s leading advanced technologies and techniques, many of which are not available to other businesses.

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The Development of Renewable Energy in Vietnam

On June 15th, 2020, at the National Assembly’s socio-economic discussion session, the Ministry of Industry and Trade clarified a number of issues related to the implementation of power projects and energy security in Vietnam amid the the situation of energy supply, especially electricity supply is facing many difficulties when hydroelectric and thermal power reserves are almost fully exploited and the risk of energy import is increasing.

Vietnam has the advantage of being an equatorial country, with high annual sunshine hours (average from 1800-2600 hours/year) which is an advantage to develop solar energy. Vietnam has a long coastline (3260 km) and favorable terrain, the construction of wind power stations is a solution that can help improve Vietnam’s electricity output in the next years.

As reported by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, for solar power, the total planned capacity of about 10,300 MW has been operated on 90 solar power projects with a total capacity of about 5,000 MW. For wind power, as proposed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Prime Minister has agreed to supplement the planning of an additional 7,000 MW of wind power, raising the total scale of wind power capacity planned to 11,630 MW.

In addition, according to Vietnam’s commitment at COP21, Vietnam will reduce the greenhouse gas emissions by 8% by 2030. And with effective support from the international community, Vietnam can cut its emissions by 25% greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. And the Clean energy technology is one of the best solutions to fulfill this commitment.

In addition, the installation, operation and maintenance of wind and solar power systems are relatively simple, at low cost therefore will save time and cost for investors. Besides, clean energy does not cause impacts on large-scale migration environment, such as deforestation, emissions of dust, water and ash, etc. In contrast, it also creates beautiful and majestic landscapes, and attractive to visitors, this is in line with Vietnam’s sustainable development goals in the future.

With economic and environmental advantages, the scientists forecast that, in the world to 2040 and 2050, the percentage of solar power capacity in total generating capacity will be 45% and 50 %; The structure of electricity production by 2050 is as follows: Number 1 is solar power: 35.8%; followed by onshore wind power: 24.3%; Offshore wind power: 12.1%; Hydroelectricity: 12.4% and the rest are other sources of renewable energy and fossils and nuclear: 15.4%.

In order to ensure the implementation of the overall plan for the coming time, the Ministry of Industry and Trade is focusing on speeding up the construction of the electricity Planning No. VIII to submit to the Government in the fourth quarter of 2020. In particular, following the contents of the Resolution No. 55-NQ/TW of the Politburo on “Vietnam’s national energy development strategy orientation to 2030, vision to 2045” on February 11th, 2020, according to which ratio of sources of renewable energy in the total primary energy supply will reach about 15-20% by 2030; 25-30% by 2045.

According to Resolution No. 55-NQ/TW, Vietnam will develop breakthrough mechanisms and policies to encourage and promote the renewable energy sources in order to replace fossil energy sources at maximum. Prioritizing the use of wind and solar energy for electricity generation; encourage investment in building power plants using urban waste, biomass and solid waste in parallel with environmental protection and economic development of the circulation. To establish and develop a number of renewable energy centers in advantageous regions and localities. Then researching and assessing the overall potential and developing development orientations for geothermal energy, ocean waves, tides and ocean currents; deploy a number of application models, conduct pilot tests to evaluate the effectiveness. To undertake technological research, formulate a number of production pilot projects and encourage the use of hydrogen energy in line with the general trend of the world. In addition, the Resolution prioritizes the development of renewable energy in line with the ability to ensure system safety with reasonable electricity costs and encourage the development of rooftop and surface solar power. To develop groundbreaking support policies and mechanisms for offshore wind power development in association with the implementation of the Vietnam’s Sea Strategy.

With advantages and priority policies for renewable energy development as above, Vietnam hopes that more international investors will invest and set up company in renewable energy to in Viet Nam.

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More Than 88,000 Billion VND Invested in Renewable Energy in Ninh Thuan

Ninh Thuan province of Vietnam is an attractive destination of foreign investors who want to invest in Vietnam energy industry.

As of June 2020, Ninh Thuan province has 34 solar power projects, 13 wind power projects that have been granted investment policy decisions, with a total capital of over 88,782 billion VND.

According to Department of Planning and Investment of Ninh Thuan province, as of June 2020, there have been 34 solar power projects/2,376.85MW and 13 wind power projects/678.95MW that have been granted investment policy decisions, with a total capital of over 88,782 billion VND, has connected to the national grid 25 projects with a total capacity of 1,556.55 MW.

Currently, some large-scale projects are being accelerated to complete in 2020, such as the Trung Nam – Thuan Nam Solar Power Plant project (450 MW) combining 220/500 kV transformer station and 500 kV, 220 kV transmission line in Phuoc Minh commune (Thuan Nam district), with a total investment of 12,000 billion VND. The completion of this project will release the capacity of renewable energy plants in Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan areas, adding more than 1 billion kWh of electricity per year to the national electricity system.

In order to create a breakthrough, to develop quickly and sustainably, with the permission of the Prime Minister, Ninh Thuan province is the first province in the country to hire the Monitor Group of the US to formulate the provincial socio-economic development master plan of Ninh Thuan province in the period of 2011 – 2020 and vision to 2030. At the same time, hired the British Arup Group to formulate a master plan for Phan Rang -Thap Cham city development and coastal planning of the province.

According to the provincial socio-economic development master plan already approved by the Prime Minister. The province’s economic development orientation in the coming time is to build Ninh Thuan into a high quality tourist center and clean energy center of the country. In particular, priority should be given to the development of six key groups of industries, including: Energy, Tourism, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Industry, Construction and Real Estate Business, Education and Training.

Regarding energy development, Ninh Thuat province has achieved great results. The province has taken the initiative in developing the approval of the provincial Electricity Development Plan for the 2016 – 2025 period, with a vision to 2035; Ninh Thuan solar power development plan for the period of 2016 – 2020, vision to 2030 with the scale of 10,476 MW.

Especially in 2018, the province proposed and was issued a Resolution No. 115/NQ-CP by the Government on specific mechanisms and policies to support Ninh Thuan province. This is a policy of great importance to the socio-economic development of the province in the period to 2023 and the following years, with many new policy mechanisms, focusing on breakthrough industries of the province, especially the policy of building Ninh Thuan to become the center of renewable energy of the whole country.

This policy allows Ninh Thuan to enjoy the preferential electricity price mechanism of 9.35 Uscent/Kwh with a capacity of 2,000 MW until the end of 2020; developing Bac Ai accumulating hydroelectricity (capacity of 1,200 MW); Ca Na electrification center (LNG) (scale of 1,500 MW) …

Thanks to the large investment capital poured into renewable energy projects, Ninh Thuan’s GRDP in the first 6 months of 2020 reach 8,967 billion VND, increase by 8.46% over the same period; State budget revenue reached 1,770 billion VND; total investment capital of the whole society is estimated at 18,450 billion VND…

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Wind Power: The Inevitable Trend of Sustainable Development

With the increasing demand for electricity, Vietnam is also gradually considering investing in renewable energy, including wind power as the key to addressing energy security, contributing to the realization of the country’s green development strategy.

Energy is one of essential human needs and an indispensable input of economic activity. As the living standards of the people are improving, the level of production of the economy is more modern, the demand for energy is also growing, and satisfying this demand is a real challenge for almost every country.

The race to exploit fossil fuels at all costs of human beings is reaching the limits of nature’s endurance, causing polluted living environments, climate change, causing unrest for the welfare of the community and become one of the global non-traditional security issues, threatening the survival of humanity.

Being aware of that, many countries around the world have been switching from fossil fuel to renewable energy for sustainable development. In many areas, power source from renewable energy projects is equivalent to those from fossil fuel projects, breaking the threshold that we believed to be impracticable.

Currently, in Europe, nearly 50% of new power development projects are wind power projects. In China – the most populous country, in March 2017, the Government shut down its last coal-fired power plant in Beijing to switch to renewable and gas electricity and.

According to the IEA latest report, globally, in 2016, investments in wind and solar power have doubled investments in fossil-fuel power. Furthermore, it is estimated that wind, solar and gas powers will completely replace coal power in the next 25 years.

In Vietnam, the development of the economy has made demand for electricity surge while supply capacity has not developed in time. The Ministry of Industry and Trade has forecasted that average electricity production growth rate of Vietnam in the period 2016 – 2020 is 10.7% per year and the period 2021 – 2025 is 8.6% per year.

Therefore, the Government of Vietnam considers the exploitation and utilization of renewable energy resources have special and strategic meaning in terms of socio-economic, national security and defense, energy security, sustainable development and minimizing environmental impact.

Most experts said that Vietnam has enormous potential for wind power. According to a study by the World Bank, Vietnam has the largest wind energy potential in the region, surpassing Laos, Cambodia and Thailand.

Accordingly, Vietnam’s wind reserve is estimated at 513,360 MW, more than 6 times the estimated total capacity of the electricity sector by 2020. The World Bank study also showed that 8.6% of Viet Nam’s land area is very potential, convenient for the installation of large wind turbines. The corresponding figure of Cambodia is 0.2%, Laos is 2.9% and Thailand is 0.2%.

Understanding the general trend of the world as well as encouraging investment incentives of the Government, about 50 wind power projects have been registered for investment in Vietnam and there are 4 projects with total capacity of 159.2 MW has gone into commercial operation.

Most recently, the Phuong Mai 3 Wind Power Project in Nhon Hoi Economic Zone (Quy Nhon – Binh Dinh), has a capacity of 21 MW – 28 MW, including 14 turbines with a total investment of 40 – 50 million USD are invested by HALCOM Company and its international partners. With an area of 140 hectares, the project is expected to supply about 72 million kWh of electricity per year and reduce emissions by 40,000 tons of CO2 per year. According to representatives of HALCOM, the project will be implemented in 2017 – 2018. Once completed, the estimated revenue can reach 150 billion VND per year.

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Thai Giant Acquires Solar Power Project in Vietnam

Many foreign investors have chosen Vietnam as a destination to invest in solar power project in Vietnam.

Together with the explosion of solar power projects, 2019 is considered to be the peak year of the ‘underground waves’ surrounding the race for additional licenses for solar power planning in all levels from central to local. The situation of license trading, project transfer to foreign investors also appeared.

Along with the rush of solar power projects, in recent days, a series of news that many weak investors still have acquired large-scale renewable energy projects, then quickly transferring to foreign investors to make profit gradually appearing in many forums about renewable energy. Even, according to the announcement of foreign investors, the transfer of solar power projects in Vietnam is taking place very excitingly.

Most recently, the Board of Directors of Super Energy Corporation Company Limited (Super Energy) of Thailand announced that at the end of March 2020, they have sent a letter to the Thai Securities Commission announcing the decision to spend no more than 456.7 million USD to invest in 4 solar power plant projects, including Loc Ninh 1 (200 MW), Loc Ninh 2 (200 MW), Loc Ninh 3 (150 MW) and Loc Ninh 4 (200 MW) in Binh Phuoc province (Vietnam).

According to the announcement, the investment in Loc Ninh 1 solar power project is 99.7 million USD; in Loc Ninh 2 is 140 million USD; in Loc Ninh 3 is 105 million USD and in Loc Ninh 4 is 112 million USD. In order to raise the ownership rate at businesses implementing the 4 solar projects, the Super Energy project has to pay a total of 72.9 million USD as scheduled. In particular, the amount paid in March 2020 is more than 5.7 million USD. Specifically, the payment in March 2020 was 13,667 million USD. The amount payable in June 2020 will be 32.4 million USD and the amount payable in November 2020 will be 11.6 million USD. Under the agreement, if the purchase price is different from the forecast of 7.09 US cents/kWh, the value of the stock will be adjusted according to the actual purchase price.

However, according to initial information, not all Vietnamese partners (many believe that subsidiaries of Hung Hai Group) will receive all this money. Currently the first payment took place with the amount of 5,732 million USD. The remaining payments will be accompanied by detailed conditions such as when there is land lease decision, construction permit, grid contract, land use right certificate, or certificate of eligibility for commercial electricity generation with the purchase price of electricity is 7.09 UScents/kWh…

Notably, before the acquisition of the 4 mentioned projects, the Thai energy company owned 6 solar power projects in Vietnam. As of March 2020, these 6 projects alone had a total capacity of up to 286.72 MW, equal to half of the total capacity of 100 solar power projects in Thailand that SEC owns.

A special feature is that all 6 power projects in Vietnam that Super Energy acquired earlier only had the return on investment (EIRR) of 12-13%. And power projects under Loc Ninh project cluster have much higher EIRR, from 16.59% to 17.4%. In addition to solar power projects, the SEC also owns 4 wind power projects in Vietnam, in Bac Lieu, Soc Trang, Phu Yen and Gia Lai provinces. These projects are expected to be fully or partially operational from Q4/2021.

According to research, through the form of joint venture, transfer of shares with Vietnamese enterprises, many foreign energy and investment corporations have owned dozens of solar and wind power projects and enjoyed preferential prices of 9.35 UScents/kWh for 20 years in Vietnam.

Among these are the two solar power plants TTC 1 and TTC 2 in Tay Ninh, invested and operated by Thanh Thanh Cong Group and Gulf Energy Group (Thailand), operated in the middle of 2019. At that time, Thai group owns 49% of the capital but in the latest change, Gulf has increased its holding to 90%. Apart from the solar power projects in Tay Ninh, Thai group also holds wind power projects in Ben Tre with 95% ownership.

In addition to the above mentioned projects, Super Energy has also invested in the form of buying shares in solar power projects in Ninh Thuan, An Giang… In addition to Thailand, many investors come from Singapore, China, Philippines… also owns dozens of solar and wind power projects in Vietnam through shares and joint ventures.

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Exxon Mobil Wants to Participate in Series of LNG Gas Power Projects in Vietnam

Exxon Mobil wants to invest in Vietnam, specifically invest in Vietnam energy sector.

The chain of ports, depots and LNG gas plant in Hai Phong has a scale of 4,000 MW and in Long An has a scale of about 3,000 MW.

In a conversation with Vietnam Prime Minister in June 2020, Global President of Exxon Mobil said that the Group wants to take advantage of opportunities and invest in the energy sector in Vietnam.

Accordingly, Exxon Mobil wants to invest in the chain of port, LNG gas storage and LNG power plants with the most modern technology in Hai Phong. The scale of the electricity production project from LNG is up to over 4,000 MW, expected to go into operation in the period of 2025 – 2030.

As for the current gas-electric chain with a capacity of about 3,000 MW in Long An, Exxon Mobil will ensure continuous supply of LNG directly from the United States and from some other countries. The import of LNG will contribute to creating a harmonious trade balance between Vietnam and the United States.

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Wind Power in Vietnam Attracts the Attention of Foreign Investors

Tra Vinh People’s Committee has approved the policy for three investors to implement the Hiep Thanh wind power plant project in the province with a total investment of nearly 3,370 billion VND; of which 20% is contributed by investors, the rest is loan from bank Landesbank Baden-Wurttembrg-LBBW, Germany. It shows that Vietnam wind power sector is attracting attention of foreign investors.

The Hiep Thanh wind power plant project will be built on a total area of 2,747 ha in the coastal alluvial land of Hiep Thanh commune, Duyen Hai town (Tra Vinh province) with the design capacity of 78MW, with 18 – 19 wind turbine columns.

Investors implementing the project include Ecotech Vietnam Renewable Energy Joint Stock Company (based in Hai Ba Trung District, Hanoi); Janakuasa Pte LTD (Singapore) and Mr Lam Minh (Ba Dinh District, Hanoi). Investors have established Ecotech Tra Vinh Renewable Energy JSC to carry out the project. The duration of the project is 49 years.

According to General Director of Tra Vinh Ecotech Renewable Energy Joint Stock Company, the project was included in the Power Development Plan for Tra Vinh province in the period 2016 – 2025, with a view to 2035, which was approved by the Ministry of Industry and Trade on May 19th 2016. Currently the project is implementing investment procedures with the aim of putting into operation in the first quarter of 2020.

Sharing about the wind power price, according to leader of Tra Vinh Ecotech Renewable Energy JSC, the price of wind power is currently approved by the Prime Minister under Decision 37/2011/QD-TTg on the mechanism to support the development of wind power projects in Vietnam and take effect from August 20th 2011 is 7.8 cents/kWh.

According to leader of Tra Vinh Ecotech Renewable Energy JSC, Vietnam is the most potential country in ASEAN in recent years and coming years.

However, with the electricity price of 7.8 cents/kWh in this project, it is difficult to arrange capital, but the company is willing to bet on the project because they believe in the development of the Vietnam economy and want to contribute to the development of power plants in Vietnam. Investors also believe that the Government of Vietnam will study and reconsider bring the price of wind power to a more harmonious level, ensuring equality between renewable energy sources.

Hiep Thanh wind power plant is the fourth wind power project which was granted investment policy in Tra Vinh province. Previously, Tra Vinh province has granted investment certificates for 3 wind power projects, with a total designed capacity of 192 MW, in Truong Long Hoa commune (Duyen Hai town) and Dong Hai commune (Duyen Hai district).

These projects are in the stage of implementing appraisal procedures, approving the basic design… to start the construction. These projects are also in the list of projects calling for investment of Tra Vinh province in the period 2016 – 2020.

According to Tra Vinh wind power development plan up to 2020, with a view to 2030, which was approved by the Ministry of Industry and Trade on December 4th 2015, Tra Vinh province has planned 6 wind power projects at 6 coastal mudflats of Duyen Hai district and Duyen Hai town; in which there are 3 plants in Truong Long Hoa commune, 2 plants in Hiep Thanh commune and 1 plant in Dong Hai commune.

By 2020, the total installed capacity is about 270MW, the corresponding wind power is 634 million kWh. By 2030, the installed capacity will be about 1,338 MW. Total investment for wind power grid connected projects by 2020 is about 14,313 billion VND.

The wind power development projects will bring many benefits to the socio-economic development of Tra Vinh province such as increasing the local budget from taxes, increasing the electricity supply to create jobs for local workers; create landscapes to attract tourists.

In order to implement Vietnam’s national energy development strategy up to 2020 with a vision to 2050 (promulgated together with Decision No. 1855/QD-TTg, December 27th 2007), Vietnam strives to increase the ratio of new and renewable energy sources to around 5% of primary commercial energy by 2020 and about 11% by 2050.

According to Decision No 1208/QD-TTg dated July 21st 2011 of the Prime Minister on the approval of the Power Plan VII will bring the total wind power capacity from current level to about 1,000 MW in 2020 and around 6,200 MW by 2030. Electricity produced from wind power accounts for 0.7% in 2020 to 2.4% in 2030.

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Solar Energy Power Future in Vietnam

Although the initial investment cost for solar energy in Vietnam is high but it brings in opportunities for cheaper option than thermal power technology being used in Vietnam.

In other country, solar power plants are competing fiercely with the thermal power plants running on coal.

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In Vietnam, Thien Tan solar energy plant has been started to construct on 24 ha land in Quang Ngai with capacity of 19.2 MW at investment of VND 800 bil. The Ministry of Industry and Trade has also approved the investment project of Tuy Phong solar energy plant on 50 ha land in Binh Thuan with capacity of 30 MW at investment of VND 1,454 bil. This will open opportunities for renewable energy to contribute to the effort of protecting the environment and curbing climate change.

The solar energy is new in Vietnam therefore the investment in this area is at very early stage. However, the foreign investors have been increasingly interested in seeking opportunities in investment in solar energy projects.

Similar to investment in wind power energy in Vietnam, one of the concerns for investors is the expected increase in purchasing price from Electricity Vietnam Corporation, the party whom purchase the electricity on Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). Further, legal frameworks for promoting solar energy investment are not yet finalized. Accordingly, the contribution ratio of renewable energy in Vietnam is minimal. The Vietnam government has been trying to put some effort to increase the renewable energy contribution to 5,6% (in 2020) and 9,4% (2030).

To achieve this, Vietnam government shall need to be consulted on plan to support the solar energy investment project in Vietnam in tax, land, capital, power purchase agreement. Investors would need to be consulted by local consulting firm on process, procedures on investment policy, appraisal process, power purchase agreement, and other steps to develop and execute an energy project in Vietnam to improve the effectiveness of the investment in renewable energy.

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Korean Investors Research to Invest in Solar Power Projects in Quang Tri Province

IL Yang Industrial Company (Korea) is planning to invest in Vietnam, conducting research, study, proceed to set up company building solar power plant in Quang Tri province, Vietnam.

On December 22nd, IL Yang Industrial Company (Korea) had a meeting with Quang Tri People’s Committee to discuss their investment in solar power project in Quang Tri province. Previously IL Yang Industrial Company had a field trip in Hai Lang and Vinh Linh district, Quang Tri province.

According to IL Yang Industrial Company, through surveys, the Company found that Quang Tri is a potential province to develop solar power. Therefore, in the coming time, the Company will continue to work with the province and other sectors to better understand the indicators to study, proceed to invest in building solar power plant in Hai Lang district with the capacity of 500MW and Vinh Linh district with the capacity of 200MW.

At the meeting, IL Yan Industrial Company expressed their wish to exchange relevant information as well as support and create favorable conditions from Quang Tri province’s leaders to study the project.

According to the People’s Committee of Quang Tri province, Quang Tri province is currently planning to attract investment projects in the field of industry, with priority in the areas of competitive advantage and environmentally friendly industries. In fact, there have been some solar power projects in the area.

The proposed investment in solar power plants in Hai Lang and Vinh Linh of IL Yang Company with advanced technology is suitable with the planning policy of locality. Since then, Quang Tri province is ready to cooperate, create conditions for the company to complete procedures and apply the maximum support policies of the province.

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Investment in Wind Power Project in Vietnam

Wind power is one of priority sectors to develop in Vietnam. Vietnam Government has been given a lot of incentives as well as support for wind power development projects.

Wind power investment procedure in Vietnam

Step 1: Project location

Investment in wind power projects must be suitable with the development plans of wind power and electricity, which are approved by the competent authorities.

Investors are licensed the wind power investment and development permit for wind power projects that are on the list of approved national wind power and electricity development plans. Moreover, in terms of the projects which are not in the approved list, the investors are responsible to create its dossiers which will be added to the development plan and examined by Ministry of Industry and Trade and then by Prime Minister.

Step 2: Evaluate wind potential at selected location

It is necessary to install wind measurement masts (if they are not available on the project location) and implement the wind measurement at least one year.

Step 3: Pre-feasibility research and require adding the project to power development plan

If the project location has potential wind condition, the investors will make a report and submit to Ministry of Industry and Trade to add this project to the list of power development plan. The Ministry is responsible to consider the application and asks for Prime Minister’s approval (wind power is a new sector in Vietnam, so the procedure has not been issued yet. All wind power projects with large scale as more than 50 MW have to be approved by the Prime Minister). After the project has been approved, the application is submitted to Department of Planning and Investment where the project is located

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Step 4: Make investment report (feasibility study)

After being approved, the investment report will be submitted to Ministry of Industry and Trade to evaluate and approve

Step 5: Signing power purchase agreement with EVN

Under the provisions of Decision No. 37/2011/QD-TTg, EVN is obliged to buy the entire power output of the wind power project. Agreement and finalize the signing of the power purchase contracts, connection, design metering systems. Currently, the standard power purchase agreement is still in the process of waiting for approval from the Government.

Step 6: Implementation of the project

When the technical design is completed and the investment report is approved by the competent authorities such as Department of Industry and Trade, Department of Construction, Department of Natural Resource and Environment and other relating departments.

Step 7: Construction

According to Decision 37/2011/QD-TTg, the investors are allowed to start the construction only when its investment certificate is granted, have the signed power purchase agreement with the power buyer, have connecting agreement with the power distributor; wind condition report is continuously recorded in 12 months.

Policy framework relating to wind power supporting in Vietnam

Policies and incentive mechanisms of the Vietnamese Government for wind power sector are expressed through clearer legal policies clearer in recent times. Prime Minister issued Decision No. 1208/QD-TTg of July 21, 2011, approving the national plan for power development in the period 2011 – 2020 with consideration to 2030. In which expresses the goal of the Vietnam Government is to prioritize developing renewable sources for electricity production, increasing the proportion of electricity produced from 3.5% in 2010 to 4.5% of total power manufactured in 2020 and 6% in 2030.

The government’s commitment to renewable power sector in general and wind power sector in particular is clearly indicated after Decision No. 37/2011/QD-TTg was issued on 29 June 2011 (taken into effect on 20th August, 2011) stipulating the mechanism to support the development of wind projects in Vietnam. Accordingly, the wind power projects enjoy preferential of capital, tax and fee.

– Mobilizing investment capital: Investors are allowed to mobilize capital in the form of permission from the organizations and individuals at home and abroad, has preferential investment credit under the existing legal provisions on investment credit and export gorvernment’s.

– Preferential of tax:

+ Import tax: The project to develop and use of renewable energy sources are exempt from import duty for goods imported to form fixed assets for the project; imported goods are raw materials, supplies and semi-finished products cannot be produced domestically and imported for production of projects as stipulated by the current legislation on export tax and import tax.

+ Enterprise income tax: The exemption and reduction of enterprise income tax for projects to develop and use of renewable energy sources is made as to projects in the field of investment incentives as stipulated by the current legislation on taxes.

– Incentives on land: The project to develop and use of renewable energy sources be exempted or reduced of land use fees and land rent as stipulated by the current legislation applicable to projects in the field of incentives invest.

– Priority is given to research related to the development and use of renewable energy resources in the field of scientific development and technology and development of high-tech industry; allocate funds from the fund to support scientific studies and technology in the pilot project, the project of industrialization for development and use of renewable energy, promote technological improvements relating to the development and use of renewable energy, reduce production costs of renewable energy products and improve product quality.

According to Decision No. 37/2011 / QD-TTg on the mechanisms to support wind power. In which, the buyer (EVN) is responsible for purchasing all electricity output from wind power project at the price of 1,614 VND / kWh (excluding VAT value added taxequivalent to 7.8 US cents / kWh) at the point of delivery of electricity. Electricity purchase prices are adjusted according to fluctuations in the exchange rate between VND and USD. In particular, the State shall support for the buyer the price of electricity at the price of 207 VND / kWh (equivalent to 1.0 US cents / kWh) for the entire output of electricity purchased from wind power plants through Protection Fund Vietnam environment. This means, the buyer or EVN only pay 6.8 US cents / kWh.

According to Decision No. 37/2011/QD-TTg on the mechanisms to support wind power. In which, the buyer (EVN) is responsible for purchasing all electricity output from wind power project at the price of 1,614 VND / kWh (excluding VAT, equivalent to 7.8 US cents / kWh) at the point of electricity delivery. Electricity purchase price will be adjusted according to the fluctuations in the exchange rate between VND and USD. In particular, the State shall support for the buyer at the price of 207 VND / kWh (equivalent to 1.0 US cents / kWh) for the entire output of electricity purchased from wind power plants through Vietnam Environment Protection Fund. This means, the buyer or EVN has to pay only 6.8 US cents / kWh

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Korean Investor Proposed to Invest in 200 MW Hydroelectric Power Plant at Chan May – Lang Co

Chairman of the People’s Committee of Thua Thien Hue province has just had a meeting and worked with the Director of the Busan Economic Promotion Agency (Korea) (BEPA) to learn about investment and development opportunities in Thua Thien Hue Province.

At the meeting, Director of BEPA has informed about investment orientation and investment promotion plan of Busan city abroad, including investment cooperation in Vietnam.

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Through understanding the potentials and policies to attract investment of Thua Thien Hue province, the Korean agency wants to cooperate with Thua Thien Hue province to develop some investment projects and bring large enterprises in Busan to investment in the province.

Accordingly, the Korean side proposed to invest in a number of projects in Chan May – Lang Co Economic Zone of Thua Thien Hue province, namely investment in hydroelectric power plant, capacity of 200 MW and investment in construction of ports serving for the transportation of raw materials for power plants, and import – export activities. In addition, the Korean side wishes to study investment in infrastructure and industrial development investment projects in accordance with the investment attraction policy of Thua Thien Hue province in Chan May – Lang Co Economic Zone.

Chairman of Thua Thien Hue Provincial People’s Committee welcomed and highly appreciated BEPA’s desire and ideas for investment and development proposals in Thua Thien Hue province; Provincial departments and agencies will coordinate and create the best conditions for BEPA as well as Korean investors to study investment projects in Chan May – Lang Co Economic Zone.

For the investment in Hydro gas power plant, Chairman of the province proposed that BEPA should complete the dossier soon to submit to the Ministry of Industry and Trade for consideration and incorporation into the development investment plan and at the same time soon negotiate with EVN on the electricity prices serve as a basis for the effective investment of power plant in Chan May – Lang Co Economic Zone.

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Korean Capital Flows into Renewable Energy

Vietnam has issued many policies and incentives for the development of the power sector. This is a good time to attract foreign capital into Vietnam energy industry, including those from Korea.

According to Mr Nguyen Van Vy, Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Energy Association, with the goal of raising the proportion of electricity produced from renewable energy to 32% by 2030 and 43% by 2050, Vietnam currently has about 50 wind power projects, more than 100 solar power projects and many other biomass energy development projects are under study.

Meanwhile, according to the National Electricity Development Plan 2011 – 2020 with a vision to 2030, Vietnam will accelerate the development of electricity production from renewable energy and reduce the proportion of hydropower.

In order to realize these objectives, Vietnam has promulgated many policies and incentives to encourage the development of renewable energy, such as investment credit, import tax, export tax, enterprise income tax, exempt land use fees and land rents for renewable energy projects, provide financial support for scientific and technological research activities on energy. At the same time, calling for investment and receiving science and technology to develop the domestic electricity equipment industry.

More recently, many Korean businesses have come to the provinces to look for investment opportunities in renewable energy projects, such as IL Yang Industrial Co., Ltd., proposed to Quang Tri province to invest in building solar power plant in Hai Lang District (capacity 500 MW) and Vinh Linh District (capacity 200 MW); Or VTC company, after inquiring in Bac Lieu province, they are preparing large capital for wind power project and if approved, they will quickly expedite the necessary procedures as prescribed.

At the Vietnam – Korea Renewable Energy and Power Industry Forum recently held in Ho Chi Minh City, according to Mr Paik Un Gyu – Minister of Commerce, Industry and Energy of Korea, the two countries have long-term cooperation potential in the fields of energy, renewable energy and smart grid.

According to Mr Paik Un Gyu, Korea will actively invest in power generation and renewable energy development projects in Vietnam as a strategic partner. In addition, Korea also supports the training of human resources and technology transfer to develop internal power and renewable energy in Vietnam.

On this occasion, at the 8th Session of the Vietnam – Korea Joint Committee for Cooperation in Nuclear Power, Energy, Industry and Trade, the two sides agreed on a number of bilateral cooperation. In particular, there are many cooperation in the field of energy, such as cooperation in projects to build power plants in the form of BOT; cooperation in the field of oil and gas; cooperation in renewable energy; cooperation on energy security management; development cooperation in supporting industries…

This is the basic content for the two countries to develop and implement concrete and practical projects to further develop cooperation in the fields of industry, trade and energy in 2018 and the coming years.

According to Korean businesses, now is a good time for enterprises to learn about the strategy and planning for development of electricity and renewable energy as well as contact and exchange directly with the leading enterprises of Vietnam. Accordingly, enterprises of the two countries can consider the possibility of cooperation in various forms, such as joint venture investment in the development of power projects, cooperation in providing technology, equipment and specialized materials.

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The changes of laws will be monitored by ANT Lawyers Energy and Project practice. For advice or service request, please contact us via email ant@antlawyers.vn, or call +84 28 730 86 529

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Gulf Group (Thailand) Targets 7.8 Billion USD Ca Na Gas Power Project

Gulf Group (Thailand) is looking to invest in LNG Ca Na Gas Power Project (Ninh Thuan), with a scale of 6,000 MW, with an investment of 7.8 billion USD. Not only Gulf, more and more foreign investors are interested in gas power projects in Vietnam.

Gulf Energy Development Public Co., Ltd has just arrived in Ninh Thuan to propose an investment plan for the LNG Ca Ca Gas Power Project. Accordingly, Gulf wants Ninh Thuan to agree on the policy so that the Group can implement the LNG Port Project and the LNG Ca Na Gas Power Complex Project, with a scale of 6,000 MW, including 4 combined cycle gas turbine plants, each plant has a capacity of 1,500 MW. The project therefore has an investment capital of up to 7.8 billion USD, which is expected to be invested in the form of BOT, or other forms.

According to the Vice-Chairman of the People’s Committee of Ninh Thuan Province, Gulf – with its financial experience and capacity (Gulf is a group of billionaires Sarath Ratanavadi and the third largest power generation company in Thailand) – will be one of the candidates for the province to choose for the LNG Gas Power Project and Ca Na Power Center in the future.

On September 2018, together with the promulgation of specific mechanisms to support Ninh Thuan’s socio-economic development, Vietnam Prime Minister agreed to allow this province to research and develop LNG Ca Na liquefied natural gas and gas power complex with appropriate scale. And since then, Ninh Thuan has planned to promote investment in this project.

And indeed, right after the Government approved the policy for Ninh Thuan to develop LNG gas power complex, many foreign corporations came to Ninh Thuan to consider the possibility of investment projects. Notably, that is the Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO). In Ninh Thuan, KEPCO plans to invest in a gas power plant with a capacity of about 3,000 – 4,000 MW, covering an area of about 40 hectares.

Earlier this year, KEPCO went to Ninh Thuan to survey the location and expressed its desire to invest with provincial leaders. And KEPCO is also a potential partner. Currently, in addition to domestic power projects, KEPCO is operating and developing 37 projects in 25 different countries around the world, including nuclear power projects, coal thermoelectricity, gas thermal power, new and renewable energy, mining.

In addition, Total Corporation of France signed an agreement with Ninh Thuan Provincial People’s Committee to research and develop the Ca Na Ninh Thuan Gas Project Complex from November 2018. And recently, this investor has continuously come to Ninh Thuan to discuss issues related to this project. Total also proposed Ninh Thuan Provincial People’s Committee to propose the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Government to add the project to the planning.

As planned, Total will work with partners such as Siemens, Vovatek (Russia) and A&A Vietnam Investment and Technology Company Limited (A&A) to deploy Ca Na Gas Power Project with a total capacity of 4,500 MW, in which phase I is 1,500 MW; total investment is 1.2 billion USD.

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Korean Investors Research to Invest in Solar Power Projects in Quang Tri Province

IL Yang Industrial Company (Korea) is planning to invest in Vietnam, conducting research, study, proceed to set up company building solar power plant in Quang Tri province, Vietnam.

On December 22nd, IL Yang Industrial Company (Korea) had a meeting with Quang Tri People’s Committee to discuss their investment in solar power project in Quang Tri province. Previously IL Yang Industrial Company had a field trip in Hai Lang and Vinh Linh district, Quang Tri province.

According to IL Yang Industrial Company, through surveys, the Company found that Quang Tri is a potential province to develop solar power. Therefore, in the coming time, the Company will continue to work with the province and other sectors to better understand the indicators to study, proceed to invest in building solar power plant in Hai Lang district with the capacity of 500MW and Vinh Linh district with the capacity of 200MW.

At the meeting, IL Yan Industrial Company expressed their wish to exchange relevant information as well as support and create favorable conditions from Quang Tri province’s leaders to study the project.

According to the People’s Committee of Quang Tri province, Quang Tri province is currently planning to attract investment projects in the field of industry, with priority in the areas of competitive advantage and environmentally friendly industries. In fact, there have been some solar power projects in the area.

The proposed investment in solar power plants in Hai Lang and Vinh Linh of IL Yang Company with advanced technology is suitable with the planning policy of locality. Since then, Quang Tri province is ready to cooperate, create conditions for the company to complete procedures and apply the maximum support policies of the province.

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The changes of laws will be monitored by ANT Lawyers Energy and Project practice. For advice or service request, please contact us via email ant@antlawyers.vn, or call +84 28 730 86 529

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Vietnam Solar Power Industry

Many investors are interested in solar power in Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan, Bac Lieu and the market is very dynamic. According to General Electric Plan VII, the total installed capacity of solar power of Vietnam by 2030 will achieve 12GWp, so there will be nearly 12 billion USD pouring into this sector.

The lack of electricity price policies for renewable energy and solar energy are the main causes for the attraction of investment in this sector becomes less interesting.

However, presently there are many investors interested in solar power projects in Vietnam. The solar power investment market is very exciting and a lot of investors are very willing to pour capital into the sector.

Many projects of current investors are not only located in Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan – 2 provinces that are attracting the most solar power projects, but also extending to Quang Ngai, Thua Thien Hue, Ha Tinh, Hau Giang, Bac Lieu…

According to the Clean Energy Association of Vietnam, currently the country has about 30 investors at home and abroad that are setting up new solar power projects with capacity of 20 MW to over 300 MW in some localities. Notably there are many foreign investors coming from South Korea, France, India… have registered to invest in some central provinces.

Not only foreign investors, domestic investors are also starting to research and invest in clean energy market. For example, Central Power Corporation has a solar power plant with capacity of 150 MW in Khanh Hoa; Vietnam Electricity Corporation is planning to research two projects in Dong Nai and Binh Thuan, Ninh Thuan.

Vietnam is a country with the potential of solar energy. The average solar energy density is 4.3 kWh/m2 and the average number of sunny days is around 2,000 hours/year.

In particular, from Da Nang to the southern, the potential of solar energy is very good, the radiant energy density is in the range of 4.5 to 5 kWh/m2; the average number of sunny days is 2,200 – 2,500 hours/year. Therefore, the application of solar power in these areas will be highly effective.

How ANT Lawyers Could Help Your Business in Vietnam?

The changes of laws will be monitored by ANT Lawyers Energy and Project practice. For advice or service request, please contact us via email ant@antlawyers.vn, or call +84 28 730 86 529

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Energy & Resources

Vietnam is known as a rich of natural resources country. The energy industry of Vietnam has developed for a number of years but the lack of modern technology and capital, that makes Vietnam has still stalled in this potential field. By the strength of resources, cheap labor, transport, Vietnam is attracting many foreign investors to invest in energy industry. Our energy and resources lawyers in Vietnam always monitor the legal environment and keep our client posted to changes that could impact their business.

In particular, Vietnam has considerable supplies of oil, natural gas and refineries. Proven oil reserves in Vietnam amount to 3.3 billion barrels as the second-most in Southeast Asia, after Indonesia. Revenues from oil and gas contribute about 30% of Vietnam’s GDP. Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam), a state-owned company is eligible to conduct petroleum activities, sign cooperation contracts and govern petroleum industry in Vietnam.

For exploration and production, sea zones in Vietnam are divided into different geographic “blocks” based on the advice of Petro Vietnam. The size and scope of these blocks can vary from year to year, depending on the scale of the activities undertaken by the company currently assigned to it. According to Law on Petroleum 1993, amending in 2000 and 2008, to participate in this field, the investors have to join the bidding for researching and exploiting petroleum. In special case, the Vietnam Government may appoint the contractor to select investor wishing to engage in petroleum. Then the investor must enter into a dividing products or joint venture or other contract in which contents all terms as required by Article 15 (amended), managed by Vietnam Government. This contract’s term shall not exceed 25 years in which period of research and exploration not exceed 5 years. The duration may be extended 5 years for the contract and 2 year for period of research and exploration. In case projects encouraged to invest in petroleum and exploring natural gas, the term can be 30 years and 7 years for period of research and exploration.

Taxation for petroleum activities is based on type of natural resources exploited, economic, technical conditions of the mines, the amount produced. According to law on Petroleum and other provisions on taxation, natural resources tax rate is from 4% to 25% for crude oil, 0% to 10% for natural gas. To ensure the reserve aiming to domestic demand, Vietnam has regulated export rate for natural resources, especially tax rate at 20% for crude oil and coal. This regulation was implemented to encourage companies in Vietnam to refine crude oil in country as the new refineries come online.

Vietnam has more potential in petroleum and energy industry. ANT Lawyers research and advise clients in energy and resources regulations in Vietnam. Our relationship and collaboration with with international lawyers and law firms in different part of the world, especially major oil and energy production areas in the Middle East, former Soviet Union countries give us advantage in assisting international clients in the energy and resources legal matters. ANT Lawyers is the Vietnam exclusive member of Prae Legal, a global law firm network which allow us to take on international projects.

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Regulation on Grid Connected Solar Power Investment Project

Energy and resources lawyersin Vietnam

The Ministry of Industry and Trade has recently issued Circular 16/2017/TT-BCT on project development and the model purchase contract for solar power projects.

Accordingly, the grid connected solar power investment projects are regulated as follows:

– The investor can only set up a solar power investment project included in the provincial and national level solar-power development plan; or provincial and national power development plan that are approved.

– The contents of the solar power investment project must comply with the regulations on management of investment in construction and the following requirements:

+ Evaluate the impact of solar power project connection plan on the power system in the area.

+ Having equipment connected to the SCADA system or moderation information so that the forecast information on electricity output can be transmitted per hour to the regulated agency.

– The equity ratio of grid connected solar power projects should not less than 20% of the total investment.

– The area of long-term land use shall not exceed 1.2 ha/01 MWp.

Circular 16/2017/TT-BCT takes effect on October 26th 2017.

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Govt. approves six solar power projects in Binh Phuoc

HCMC – The Government has approved six solar power projects in Binh Phuoc, with total capacity reaching 850 megawatt peak (MWp), raising the planned solar power capacity in the southern province to the highest level in Vietnam, local news site Vietnam Plus reported, citing the provincial chairman, Nguyen Van Tram.

According the province’s solar power plan, Binh Phuoc will generate 4,775MWp by 2030, while over 2,700MWp will be produced from now until 2020.

To generate this volume of solar power, up to 6,000 hectares of land will be used for developing solar power projects, which are mainly located in the province’s Loc Ninh District.

Recently, Nguyen Anh Hoang, director of the provincial Department of Industry and Trade, said the provincial People’s Committee had given approval to two investors to execute solar power projects.

The projects are set to initially generate some 600MWp of solar power in the province in June next year. Also, they will be connected to the national grid and put on commercial sale.

However, power experts said that investing in solar power usually costs an arm and a leg. For instance, the generation of 1MWp of solar power requires US$1 million.

Thac Mo Hydropower Corporation in Phuoc Long provincial town, Binh Phuoc, has been approved to generate 50MWp, with a total investment of VND1.3 trillion, equivalent to over US$55 million.

The experts added that Binh Phuoc is among three provinces with the highest number of sunlight hours and thus holds great potential for solar power development, especially in the border district of Loc Ninh.

-saigontime-

How ANT Lawyers Could Help Your Business in Vietnam?

The changes of laws will be monitored by ANT Lawyers Energy and Project practice. For advice or service request, please contact us via email ant@antlawyers.vn, or call (+84) 24 32 23 27 71.

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