Many giants eye $2.54 bln LNG project in central Vietnam’s Ha Tinh province

Vietnam’s Vingroup, T&T Group and Hoanh Son Group, and South Korea’s Samsung Electronics have come forward as potential investors in the Vung Ang III Ha Tinh LNG power project in the central province of Ha Tinh.

Vietnam’s Vingroup, T&T Group and Hoanh Son Group, and South Korea’s Samsung Electronics have come forward as potential investors in the Vung Ang III Ha Tinh LNG power project in the central province of Ha Tinh.

The Standing Board of the provincial Party Committee has given in-principle approval to research investment in the construction of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) power plant and LNG warehouse complex in Vung Ang Economic Zone, Ky Anh township.

The provincial People's Committee has assigned relevant departments and agencies to focus on implementing processes and procedures to promote project investment in line with planning regulations. It has directed the provincial Economic Zone Authority to send written feedback to investors who have previously planned investments in this field in the Vung Ang Economic Zone.

Vung Ang I thermal power plant in the Vung Ang Economic Zone, Ha Tinh province, central Vietnam. Photo by The Investor/Truong Hoa.

Previously, the committee proposed the Prime Minister and Ministry of Industry and Trade allow Ha Tinh to make an investment plan for the Vung Ang III LNG power plant project to replace the Vung Ang III thermal power plant, with a capacity of 1,500 megawatts before 2030 and 4,500 megawatts after that year, with a total investment of more than VND60 trillion ($2.54 billion).

In October 2019, Germany’s Siemens and Samsung C&T proposed a project with a capacity of 1,200-1,500 MW and a total investment of $1.5-1.8 billion.

In early October 2023, Vingroup asked the People's Committee of Ha Tinh province for permission to study investment in the Vung Ang III LNG power plant project. The project will include a 1.5 million-ton LNG port system, an LNG warehouse, and a 1,600-megawatt LNG power plant.

T&T Group also proposed to invest $3.55 billion in the 123.8-hectare Vung Ang III LNG power complex in the form of an independent power plant (IPP). The investor will build an LNG warehouse and an LNG power center with a total generation capacity of 3,000 MW. 

PV Gas, a subsidiary of state-run Petrovietnam, has also come up with plans to build an LNG warehouse with a capacity of 1-3 million tons per year in Vung Ang Economic Zone.

The LNG warehouse in Ha Tinh is consistent with the provincial master plan for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050, which aims to develop an LNG import and distribution center in Vung Ang Economic Zone.

According to the adjusted Power Development Plan VII, Vung Ang Economic Zone will have four coal-fired thermal power plants including Formosa, Vung Ang I, Vung Ang II, and Vung Ang III Power Center. 

The 1,200-MW Vung Ang I thermal power plant and the 650-MW Formosa thermal power plant have been put into operation with a combined capacity of 1,850 MW. Meanwhile, the 1,200-MW Vung Ang II project is still in the stage of site clearance and construction preparation.