Vietnam prepares for 11-15% power supply growth in 2025: ministry

Vietnam expects its electricity supply to grow 11-15% in 2025, Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien said Thursday, while asking relevant state agencies and power suppliers to make utmost preparations.

At a conference hosted by the ministry, Dien presented three scenarios for 2025, based on the development in 2024.

In the basic situation, the supply growth is 11%. The "high" situation features a growth of 12-13%, with a peak of 14% during the dry season.

The figure for the “radical” scenario is 14-15%, peaking at 16% during the dry season. The minimum increase is 7%.

Dien clarified the power supply must facilitate the country’s economic growth of 7-8% in 2025 and even higher beyond 2025.

The global trend of investment relocation, amid the United States’ changing policies, is expected to boost power demand in Vietnam, he added.

The minister reaffirmed that the power development plan VIII (PDP VIII) would maximize the usage of renewable energy (offshore wind and solar power), making investments in energy storage and power transmission inevitable.

Regarding power sources, the minister asked units to increase the output of gas-fired power, even utilizing more LNG in case natural gas is insufficient.

In reply, PV Gas, a major gas producer of the country and a unit of state-owned Petrovietnam, said it is ready to supply two billion cubic meters of LNG yearly.

State-owned mining group Vinacomin noted that it can meet the coal demand of 40 million tons for electricity generation in 2025. Minister Dien asked the sector to utilize both domestic coals and those imported from Laos.

In the first 10 months of 2024, power supply in Vietnam, including power generation and power import, reached 309.7 billion kWh, up 10.09% year-on-year. The power capacity grew 7.52%, driven by 8.01% and 8.7% hikes in the northern and southern regions, respectively.

Vietnam does not need LNG-fired power for the rest of 2024, the National Power System and Market Operation (NSMO) reported at the event.