Vietnam mining group builds 110 MW coal-fired power plant in Lang Son province

Vietnam’s national mining group Vinacomin kicked off construction Friday of the 110 MW Na Duong II coal-fired power plant in the northern mountainous province of Lang Son.

The 11-hectare, VND4,088 billion ($163.8 million) plant, invested by Vinacomin-Power Holding Corporation - a subsidiary of Vinacomin, will use sulfur-rick coal of Na Duong mine in Lang Son province as fuel.

The Na Duong power plants I and II will generate 1.36 billion kWh a year, bolstering national energy security, especially in the northeastern region.

The project is expected to employ 500 locals and contribute VND300 billion ($12 million) to the local budget every year.

The Na Duong II power plant is part of both the national power development plan (PDP) VII and VIII. The project was initiated in 2015 with the first tasks of site clearance including removing bombs and other unexploded ordnances left over from wars.

Vinacomin-Power Holding Corporation was approved as the project investor by Lang Son authorities earlier this month.

Speaking at Friday’s ceremony, Lang Son Chairman Ho Tien Thieu asked relevant agencies to help the investor complete the project in 2026.

In PDP VIII, the government stipulates that Vietnam will only implement projects already featured in PDP VII or under construction. Projects operating for at least 20 years are being urged to switch to using biomass and ammonia fuels and those operating for over 40 years are set to stop operations.

From 2050 onwards, Vietnam aims to stop all coal-fired power plants and switch them into biomass-fired or ammonia-fired ones with a total capacity of 25,632-32,432 MW and an annual output of 72.5-80.9 billion kWh.