Vingroup proposes $4.5 bln wind power project in southern Vietnam

Vingroup, Vietnam's leading private conglomerate, has proposed a $4.5 billion nearshore wind power project in the Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh.

Tra Vinh's Party chief Ngo Chi Cuong on Tuesday chaired a meeting with Vingroup on its proposal. The two sides discussed issues like the project feasibility and its connection to the national transmission lines.

At the meeting, representatives of Vingroup proposed to study and invest in a nearshore wind power project in Duyen Hai district. The survey area is over 13,400 hectares.

Its total installed capacity is expected to be 3,000 MW, including two phases: phase 1 (2025-2030) with a capacity of 1,500 MW and phase 2 (2031-2035) with 1,500 MW.

The expected power output for transmission on the national grid is 9 billion kWh/year.

Vingroup said the 9 billion kWh/year is equivalent to the output of the Nhon Trach 3-Nhon Trach 4 LNG power plant, invested by Petrovietnam subsidiary PV Power (HoSE: POW) in the southern province of Dong Nai.

According to Vingroup, during the construction process, the project will employ about 500 local workers. Once completed, it will generate a revenue of about $700-800 million a year.

Vingroup representatives also proposed the province send a document to the Ministry of Industry and Trade asking for this project to be added to the upcoming adjusted National Power Development Plan VIII (PDP VIII) for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050.

In response, provincial Party chief Ngo Chi Cuong said he welcomed Vingroup to invest in Tra Vinh. He affirmed that the potential for wind power development in Tra Vinh is huge, and the province is currently planned to become a clean energy center in the Mekong Delta region.

Cuong suggested Vingroup research and survey offshore wind power opportunities as well, as this is also an industry with great development potential.

He directed relevant local authorities to support and coordinate with Vingroup to conduct a survey of the nearshore wind power project and submit it to the Government and the trade ministry for inclusion in the adjusted PDP VIII.

Vingroup is seeking the government's permission to develop seven renewable energy projects worth $20-25 billion and a $5.5 billion LNG-fired power project from 2025-2030.

The proposal was mentioned in a dispatch sent to the government last month, which asked for the projects to be included in the adjusted PDP VIII.

The group said that the projects they proposed have been studied based on the direction of management agencies. It also studied other criteria such as localities with potential land funds, grid connection capabilities, and proximity to large load centers so that the group could build large-capacity projects which will become national energy centers (over 5,000 MW).

Vingroup, listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange as VIC, and its subsidiaries are well known for their significant property developments and electric vehicle manufacturing.

Tra Vinh province currently has five wind power projects with a total capacity of 322 MW that have been put into commercial operation and connected to the national grid, and four wind power projects with a total capacity of 344 MW that are under construction and strive to complete in 2025.

According to the draft adjustment of PDP VIII, Tra Vinh is planned to have onshore and nearshore wind power of 1,450 MW in 2025-2030 and an additional 448 MW in 2031-2035. There have been eight plants approved under PDP VIII with a total capacity of 632.5 MW.