Vietnam's first LNG power plants to begin commercial operation in Nov-Dec

Nhon Trach 3 and 4, Vietnam’s first LNG-fired power plants, are expected to begin commercial operations at the end of 2025, according to authorities in the southern province of Dong Nai.

The two plants, developed by PetroVietnam Power (PV Power, HoSE: POW), have a combined investment cost of about $1.4 billion and total capacity of 1,624 MW, making them among the largest LNG-to-power facilities in Vietnam.

They are designed to supply between nine and 12 billion kWh of electricity annually, enough to meet 60% of Dong Nai’s energy demand.

Nhon Trach 3, which was connected to the national grid on February 5, is slated to start commercial operations in November. Nhon Trach 4 is scheduled to come online in late December, provincial officials said.

The Dong Nai Department of Industry and Trade said construction is 99.97% complete and that land-leasing, site preparation and infrastructure access within the Ong Keo Industrial Park have been fully resolved.

Local authorities have instructed communes to accelerate land clearance for the 220kV transmission line linking the plants to the Long Thanh 500kV substation. Relevant agencies were also told to finalize compensation plans and complete land-use certification for the remaining households affected by the project.

The government has proposed increasing the power offtake guarantee for LNG-to-power projects to at least 75% of annual output for up to 15 years.

The proposal was included in a new government report recently submitted to the National Assembly’s Standing Committee regarding issuance of a resolution on removing obstables for 2026-2030 national renewable energy development.