Vietnamese plans to double coal power capacity by 2030

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Vietnamese plans to double coal power capacity by 2030

An excavator transfers coal from a ship onto a truck at a coal port in Hanoi.

HANOI Reuters - Vietnam could double the amount of coal-fired electric power it installs by 2030 under a draft power development plan submitted to the prime minister for approval this week.

The draft plan guarantees that Vietnam will become more dependent on coal for powering its fast growing economy at a time when financial institutions and insurers are refusing to back new projects because of fuel's large climate change impact.

Coal-fired power plants will account for up to 31.4% of as much as 143.8 GW of installed generation capacity planned in 2030, according to a copy of the so-called Power Development Plan 8 PDP 8 reviewed by Reuters.

That translates to about 41 GW of coal power by the end of the decade, up from 20.7 GW out of 69 GW of capacity from all sources as of 2020, according to the plan.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade who drafted the plan was not responding to multiple emails from Reuters seeking comment on the forecasts.

Vietnam, with a population of 98 million, is seeking to boost its power generation to support the growth of production bases for firms such as Samsung Electronics in South Korea and LG Electronics Inc.

The PDP 8 supposes that Vietnam's gross domestic product will grow annually between now and 2030 and to become 5.7% by 2045.

The country will need to invest $227.4 billion in new power plants and power grid expansions to 2030, and up to $115.96 billion in 2045 when installed capacity can be upto 329.6 GW, according to the plan.

Natural gas, including liquefied natural gas, will make up 22.4% of installed capacity by 2030 from 13% at the end of 2020 and then rise to as much as 26.9% by 2045 when coal falls to only as much as 19.4% by then.

By 2030, the proportion of non-hydro renewables will rise to 25.7% of the energy mix in 2030, flat from 24.6% at the end of the last year, according to the plan. This would increase by 41.7% in 2045.

Hydropower will fall in the energy mix to only about 20% by 2030 from 30.3% at the end of 2020, the plan showed.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh announced earlier this week that Vietnam would increase the percentage of renewables in its power mix while pursuing sustainable and efficient use of energy amid the depletion of its fossil fuel reserves.

As a developing country facing numerous difficulties, Chinh plans to build a harmonious and balanced roadmap for a sustainable energy conversion, adapting to climate change and controlling carbon emissions, Vietnam said in a statement.