Policy lender Vietnam Development Bank to loan national utility EVN $2 bln for priority projects

Wholly state-owned Vietnam Development Bank (VDB) will fund major power source and transmission projects implemented by national utility Vietnam Electricity (EVN) with VND50 trillion ($2 billion).

Under a cooperation pact signed Monday, VDB will funnel state capital to help EVN projects, especially those prioritized in the 2021-2030 national electricity development plan PDP 8 (Prime Minister’s Decision 500/QD-TTg issued in May 2023).

Speaking at the signing ceremony, EVN general director Nguyen Anh Tuan said EVN needed hundreds of trillions of VND (VND1 trillion equals $39.8 million) to invest in power plants to generate thousands of MW and hundreds of thousands of kilometers of transmission lines.

It needs VDB’s support as the limits for domestic commercial banks have already been reached and loans from foreign entities are a challenge under current regulations, Tuan added.

Prior to the latest cooperation pact, the VDB has funded various EVN projects including hydropower plants in Son La (the biggest in Southeast Asia), Lai Chau, Huoi Quang and Ban Chat; the thermal power plants of Vinh Tan 2 and Duyen Hai 1; and the 500-kV Phu My-Nha Be-Phu Lam power transmission line.

In the first seven months of 2024, Vietnam's total electricity generation reached 179.44 billion kWh, up 11.5% year-on-year, according to EVN. Electricity sales accounted for 160.41 billion kWh, up 13.52%.

Coal-fired thermal power accounted for 96.4 billion kWh, or 53.7% of the total. It was followed by hydropower with 40.9 billion kWh, or 22.8%; renewables with 24.02 billion kWh, or 13.4% (solar power of 16 billion kWh and wind power of 7.3 billion kWh); gas-fired power with 14.65 billion kWh, or 8.2%; and imported power with 3.07 billion kWh, or 1.7%.