Sumitomo keen on LNG power investment in central Vietnam

Japanese conglomerate Sumitomo Corporation has proposed to invest in the Van Phong 2 LNG-fueled power plant in the central coastal province of Khanh Hoa.

President and CEO of Sumitomo Corporation Shingo Ueno discussed the proposal with Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha in Hanoi on Tuesday.

Sumitomo is operating the $2.58-billion 1,432-MW Van Phong 1 coal-fired power plant, which was inaugurated in March, in Khanh Hoa.

The Van Phong 2 LNG-fueled power plant is not among the LNG-fired power projects named in the Plan on Implementating the National Power Development Plan VIII (PDP VIII) signed off by Deputy PM Ha in April this year.

In January 2022, the Khanh Hoa administration asked the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Prime Minister to include the Van Phong 2 LNG power plant in PDP VIII.

Per Sumitomo’s proposal back then, the Van Phong 2 LNG power plant will feature four turbines with a combined capacity of 3,000 MW and be built in two phases, with 1,500 MW set for each phase. The first phase is estimated to cost $2 billion.

It was proposed that the plant be located on an area of 53.2 hectares in Ninh Hoa town, with an aim to help the Van Phong Economic Zone become a national power hub.

At the meeting with Deputy PM Ha on Tuesday, Shingo Ueno said Sumitomo had invested in four industrial parks in Vietnam, providing around 90,000 jobs, and was working with authorities to soon finish Metro No. 1 in Ho Chi Minh City, the first metro line in the metropolis.

The Japanese giant is preparing for the construction of a smart city in northern Hanoi and an industrial park in the central province of Thanh Hoa.

For his part, Ha suggested Sumitomo solve the transport link issue and use renewables at its smart city project in Hanoi. For the industrial park in Thanh Hoa, he called on the corporation to pay attention to attracting foreign direct investment with modern and green technologies.