HCMC – The Ministry of Industry and Trade has asked the prime minister for approval of several measures to lift impediments to existing renewable energy projects, and work out a mechanism for facilitation of such projects in the years to come.
In recent years, renewable energy projects have contributed to diversifying the country’s power supply sources and socioeconomic growth. However, the booming growth of solar and wind power projects has resulted in the Industry and Trade Ministry as the State management agency of the sector and EVN as the national electricity supplier being hesitant to grant licenses to solar and wind power projects and sign power purchase agreements.
The earlier efforts made to slow down the growth of renewable energy projects are reportedly aimed at curbing the negative impacts on the environment and avoiding wastefulness.
However, in the past EVN suspended the payment for power generated from renewable energy projects to work with other projects of higher quality, thereby causing many developers of renewable energy projects to face challenges in paying and restructuring debt.
Solar power projects which had yet to be commissioned to enjoy feed-in tariffs were suspended and thus discouraged the investors.
Therefore, the ministry proposed the prime minister approve a mechanism detailed in the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s dispatch No.17 dated January 27 this year, meaning that the investors of the projects mentioned above will negotiate with the national electricity buyer, Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN), on the purchase price and contract for electricity generated from solar and wind farms, in line with the pricing policy and guidelines issued by the ministry.
For renewable energy projects that will be executed in the future, they should apply a similar mechanism, the ministry suggested.
Regarding projects already allowed to be put into commercial service, the ministry proposed the prime minister provide it with guidelines to review the power purchase agreements between EVN and the investors to harmonize the interests between the buyer, seller, consumer and the State.
Besides, the ministry requested the head of the Government consider scrapping Decision No.13 on the mechanism for solar power development, Decision No.37 and Decision No.39 on the mechanism for wind power development.
