ADB inks deal to finance first large-scale floating solar power plant in Vietnam
Hanoi (VNA) — The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on October 2 signed
a 37 million USD loan agreement with Da Nhim – Ham Thuan – Da Mi Hydro Power Joint Stock Company
(DHD) to finance the installation of a 47.5 MWp floating photovoltaic (PV) solar power facility on the
man-made reservoir of DHD’s existing 175 MW Da Mi hydropower plant.
The project marks the first large-scale installation of floating
solar PV panels in Vietnam and the largest installation in Southeast Asia,
according to ADB’s press release.
“This project will help to boost the share of renewable energy in
Vietnam’s overall energy mix and decrease the dependence on imported fossil
fuels such as coal,” said ADB Private Sector Operations Department Deputy
Director General Christopher Thieme.
He added that the pairing of those two clean energy technologies — hydropower and solar — is a simple but a highly
innovative achievement which can be replicated elsewhere in Vietnam and across
Asia and Pacific.
DHD, a subsidiary of the Vietnam Electricity (EVN) Power
Generation Corporation 1, currently owns and operates four hydropower plants: Da Mi (175 MW), Ham Thuan
(300 MW), Da Nhim (160 MW), and Song Pha (7.5 MW). DHD’s total generation
capacity is 642.5 MW, about 1.7 percent of Vietnam’s total generation capacity.
“We are proud to be the first company in Vietnam to construct a floating solar power plant on a hydropower
reservoir,” said the Chairman of the Board of DHD Nguyen Trong Oanh. “This
project aligns with DHD’s strategy of investing in renewable energy to decrease
dependence on fossil fuel, contribute to energy security, mitigate climate
change, and promote environmental protection and sustainable socio-economic
development. Hydropower reservoirs in southern Vietnam have vast solar power potential. Capitalizing on the strong
relationship between EVN and ADB, we have worked together to catalyze a new
source of power for the country.”
The financing package includes a 17.6 million USD loan from ADB’s
ordinary capital resources. This is supplemented by 15 million USD of blended concessional
cofinancing provided by the Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector in
Asia and its follow-on fund, the Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector
in Asia II. These funds were established by the Government of Canada to
encourage private investment in climate change mitigation and adaptation projects
in Asia and the Pacific.
The package also includes a 4.4 million USD parallel loan from the
Leading Asia’s Private Infrastructure Fund (LEAP), supported by the Japan
International Cooperation Agency through a 1.5 billion USD equity commitment. LEAP is
focused on delivering high quality and sustainable private sector
infrastructure projects that reduce carbon emissions, improve energy
efficiency, and offer accessible and affordable health care, education, and
communication services to ADB’s developing member countries.
ADB is committed to achieving a
prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while
sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. In 2018, it made
commitments of new loans and grants amounting to 21.6 billion USD. Established
in 1966, it is owned by 68 members - 49 from the region./.