Power cuts loom again this summer throughout Vietnam

Demand for electricity is likely to outstrip supply by about 600 million kilowatt hours (about 50 hours’ consumption) this summer, says Electricity of Vietnam, and power cuts are inevitable. The Prime Minister has issued instructions intended to spread the inconvenience around and hold it to a minimum.

Tuoi Tre newspaper includes an interview with Dau Duc Khoi, Deputy General Director of EVN, in its 6 April edition.  Khoi says the prolonged drought has crippled hydroelectric plants, presaging an electricity shortfall more serious than 2009.  Shortages will begin this month and likely peak in late June or early July.

Tuoi Tre: It seems that  “electricity shortage because of bad weather”is a chorus that repeats every year. How bad will it be this year?

DGD Dau Duc Khoi: The drought has been prolonged, forcing hydropower plants to run at reduced capacity.  Ordinarily they provide half of our national electricity requirement, that is, about 140 million kilowatt hours (kWh) per day. Currently, because rivers are low, hydropower plants can provide only 50 million kWh per day.  EVN forecasts that in the three months of the dry season, from April to June, we will be short about 600 million kWh.

Tuoi Tre: Does that mean that we will see regular power cuts?

Khoi: We need to limit consumption. In April, we need to hold power demand to no more than 270 million kWh. In May, we need to consume less than 275 million kWh and in June, 285 million kWh.

We’ve asked for the right to take the initiative in drawing up and carrying out the plan to distribute the power shortage.  When demand is too high, we will have to cut electricity supply to some places. If EVN does not cut supply according to a plan, the system will just cut electricity itself when it is overloaded. In this case, brownouts and beakdowns will occur happen.

Tuoi Tre: What should we do to minimize the necessity of rolling power cuts?

Khoi: EVN will mobilize all possible electricity sources, including electricity from the diesel-fired plants in Thu Duc and Can Tho. The electricity generated there can cost as high as 5000 dong per kWh, but we still have to purchase it in order to ease the electricity shortage.

Especially, EVN will provide diesel oil to run the generation units at newly-built power plants which are now running on the trial basis. Many plants have been ordered to delay maintenance operations or carry them out at top speed.

EVN also can purchase electricity from China, as much as 14 million kWh per day. Even so, However, the north of Vietnam will still lack electricity. We have to transfer 34 million kWh from the south to the north.

The most effective and economical method we can do to ease the electricity shortage is to practice thrift.  There would be no shortage this dry season if every household used one less light bulb!

Tuoi Tre: Many power plant projects have been slow in implementation, though no one has been disciplined for this.  Is that why we face an electricity shortage?

Khoi: We have to admit that many power plants have not been yet gone into operation as planned. We are trying our best to get some units of the Sesan 4 and Ban Ve power plants into operation this dry season.

Currently, EVN only provides 60 percent of the total electricity volume the country needs, while the remaining 40 percent comes from other sources. The Government has given contracts to investors to build more power plants.  The competent Government agencies need to urge them to speed up their work; it’s not something EVN can control.

Tuoi Tre: If we have rotating power cuts, will Hanoi and HCM City enjoy preferences? Will we prioritise the production sector or household consumption sector in providing electricity?  And why is it that power cuts are more common in rural areas?

Khoi: When we are short of electricity, it is more effective to prioritise the production sector while households try to save electricity. Electricity cuts happen regularly in rural areas because the power used there is for the household consumption.   It is not because of discrimination against rural people per se.

In a sidebar, Tuoi Tre reports that Prime Minister Dung has issued appropriate instructions to EVN, PetroVietnam and Government agencies to carry out the burden-sharing and load equalization steps that Khoi outlines in the interview above.

Tuoi tre

Tags: Vietnam energy, Vietnam power shortage