Germany’s PNE opens rep office for $4.6 bln offshore wind project in central Vietnam

Germany’s PNE AG, a leading developer of renewable energy projects, has shown its determination to proceed with a mega offshore wind power project in central Vietnam by opening a representative office there.

The opening took place in Quy Nhon town, the capital of the central province of Binh Dinh, on Wednesday, with the attendance of the province’s highest leadership, German ambassador to Vietnam Helga Margarete Barth, and the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce in Vietnam (AHK Vietnam).

Addressing the event, Per Hornung Pedersen, chairman and CEO of PNE AG, said the opening of the rep office affirmed PNE’s commitment to the project since the company started studying the possibility of investing in the project in 2019.

PNE aims to make the first phase of the $4.6-billion project operational by 2030 and become a pilot offshore wind power project in Vietnam, added Pedersen.

Ambassador Helga Margarete Barth noted the long path ahead for the project to be materialized and called for close coordination among parties to ensure its success.

She asserted the German government’s continued support for the project and hoped for its full legality as soon as possible.

For his part, Binh Dinh Chairman Pham Anh Tuan highlighted the determination by both PNE and the local administration to carry out the project over the past five years. The opening of the rep office is an advancement but the project will need to overcome legal hurdles regarding the development of offshore wind in Vietnam, Tuan added.

Affirming the local government’s “absolute support,” he hoped that such hurdles will be removed when the project dossiers are submitted to the Vietnamese government for consideration.

According to PNE, the project will be deployed on Hon Trau island, 10 kilometers off the coast of De Gi estuary, 30 km from Phu Cat airport, and about 50 km from Quy Nhon town.

Since 2022, PNE executives have met on multiple occasions with Vietnam and Germany’s prime ministers and relevant authorities to speed up the project.

The project is designed to have a capacity of 2,000 MW and be implemented in three phases. Some 50 turbines are slated to be installed in each phase.