Northern Vietnam province seeks power plant fuel shift from coal to LNG

Nam Dinh province is seeking approval to have its $2.2 billion Nam Dinh 1 power plant, currently a build-operate-transfer (BOT) project, shift to using LNG instead of coal as its fuel.

In a document seeking approval from the Ministry of Industry and Trade, authorities in the northern province said the move aimed to facilitate Vietnam fulfilling its net-zero emissions by 2050 commitment made at the COP 26.

The move was also in line with the latest national power development plan, PDP VIII, and has the support of the province’s residents, they said.

The BOT project, with a capacity of 1,109.4 MW, was granted an investment certificate in July 2017 by the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

State mining giant Vinacomin was designated coal supplier for the project, which was the fourth BOT thermal power project in Vietnam then.

The project, covering 242.7 hectares in Hai Hau district, was slated to start construction in 2018. However, issues related to power purchase agreement and restructuring of investment has stalled the project. South Korea’s Taekwang Power and Saudi Arabia’s Acwa Power were the project investors, but the latter has withdrawn its participation.

The project features in the PDP VIII as a priority project. The Ministry of Industry and Trade has been asked to extend the project deadlines, but take steps to terminate it in June 2024 if no progress is made.

In October 2023, Thailand’s Gulf Energy Development Public Company Limited expressed its willingness to reignite the project. In particular, the Thai firm urged Nam Dinh authorities to connect Gulf Energy with Taekwang Power to transform the project from a coal-fired power plant to one fired by LNG.

The request aligned with Gulf Energy’s plan to build a 1,500-3,000MW LNG power center project and an LNG terminal capable of accommodating ships of up to 200,000 cubic meters.

Vietnam currently has no LNG-to-power plant in operation. The LNG-fired Nhon Trach 3 and 4 power plants in the southern province of Dong Nai are the only such projects under construction in the country. They are expected to become operational soon.