The
Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a loan of $309.89 million for a new
750 megawatt (MW) power plant in Vietnam that will provide critically needed
electricity to the country’s energy-starved south.
The O Mon IV plant will provide a more
reliable supply of power to the Mekong Delta, support expanded industrial
activity, spur new livelihood opportunities, and reduce dependence on
hydroelectricity tapped from other regions. It is aligned with Vietnam’s power sector
development plan, which aims to more than triple energy capacity from 18,500MW
in 2010 to 60,000MW by 2020.
The new combined cycle gas turbine plant is
one of four being developed at the O Mon thermal power complex in Can Tho city,
about 250 kilometers south of Ho Chi Minh City.
The project will save approximately 600,000
tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year compared to coal-based alternatives,
possibly qualifying the facility for carbon credits.
O Mon IV, which is due for completion by June
2016, is projected to cost $793.5 million. Germany’s KfW Bankengruppe will
contribute $370 million, with state-owned Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) and the
government of Vietnam together providing almost $113.6 million.
A second plant at the O Mon thermal power
complex is to be bid out to private investors, while the government of Japan is
funding two others in conjunction with EVN.
The complex, which will have 3,600MW of
generating capacity when complete―will also support the development of
Vietnam’s offshore natural gas reserves, with a consortium of foreign and local
oil companies tapping one block in the Gulf of Thailand to supply the O Mon
facility.
“Vietnam’s power consumption has been growing
15 per cent a year over the past decade, and will continue rising at a
double-digit pace for the foreseeable future,” said Anthony Jude, director of
ADB’s Energy Division for Southeast Asia. “Vietnam desperately needs more
electricity, and the additional power supply will support economic and social
development in the Mekong Delta.”
Electricity has fueled Vietnam’s dramatic
economic expansion over the past decade, helping slash the number of people
living in poverty from 58 per cent in 1993 to 13 per cent in 2009. The growing
demand for power has put a strain on existing generating capacity, however,
resulting in power shortages and unstable supply during the dry season.
ADB has played a leading role in developing
Vietnam’s power infrastructure, with six sovereign loans totaling over $1.7
billion, two private sector loans worth $90 million, and associated guarantees
of $60 million.
Song Ngoc | vir.com.vn
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