Power shortage may hurt industry and exports

Businesses involved in heavy industry and exporting have been asked to conserve power during the dry season.

The Electricity Group of Vietnam (ENV) made a request to industrial parks (IPs) and export processing zones (EPZs) in anticipation of the shortfall of energy during this dry season.

Phan Thanh Phi, Head of the southern province of Long An’s IP management board, said each enterprise of local IPs will face two power cuts per week on average.

Many of these have said that they are not informed beforehand. The power supply can sometimes be supplemented by diesel generators, but at a high cost.

Do Duc Duc, Chairman of Viet Duc Fibre Optic Cable and Accessories Corporation located in the Long Hau IP, said his company cannot count on a stable power supply. According to him, each one of these disruptions could lead to losses of around VND20 million (USD956,930).

Companies at Long Hau IPs used over 11 million KW of electricity, provided by Can Giuoc Power Company and 5 million KW by their own generators. These figures are expected to rise by 40% this year when the IP will welcome eight additional businesses.

Authorities of the IP said they are cooperating with Southern Power Corporation to build a transformer with a capacity of 110/22KV, which would ease the situation.

Amata IP, in Dong Nai Province, has also been asked to cut down its use of electricity by 8% during the dry season.

Le Minh Chau, director of Ba Ria-Vung Tau industrial park management board, said that some news sources, who have attributed power shortage due to the licensing of many steel projects, are wrong. He added that the province will not license more steel projects in the context of the power shortage.

Phan Thanh Phi, director of Long An industrial park management board, said power shortages happen increasingly each dry season. He says that the Government should make moves to improve the situation for domestic businesses.

According to Vietnam News Agency, currently, water levels in almost all reservoirs in the southern and Central Highland regions have dropped close to the “dead level”, at which hydroelectric would be unable to operate.

Hydroelectricity accounts for around 40% of the national power supply.

To mitigate the looming power shortage, Vietnam will have to buy 4.671 billion kWh of electricity from China this year.

Tags: Vietnam electricity, Vietnam energy, Vietnam power shortage