Hanoi (VNA) - Amending the Law on Economical and Efficient Use of Energy is seen as a crucial step for Vietnam to meet its international commitment to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
Vietnam’s energy demand is expected to remain high in the coming years, while fossil fuel resources such as coal and crude oil are gradually depleting. As a result, economical and efficient energy use has been identified as an essential solution to improve economic performance, protect the environment and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
With increasingly strict requirements from global markets, failure by businesses to meet emission reduction commitments for each product will undermine competitiveness and pose serious challenges in exporting to international markets.
These issues were discussed at the seminar “Promoting Economical and Efficient Energy Use: The Need for Synchronized and Feasible Policies,” held on June 5 in Hanoi by the Industry and Trade Magazine.
According to Dang Hai Dung, Deputy Director of the Department of Innovation, Green Transition and Industrial Promotion under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Vietnam faces emerging non-traditional challenges, including climate change. Foreign markets have set up technical barriers in the form of green standards and environmental, social and governance (ESG) requirements for imported goods.
Products entering these markets must consume minimal energy and have low emissions. In the European Union, a carbon border tax will be applied from 2026, requiring measurement of emissions embedded in products exported from Vietnam. This marks the first shift from technical barriers to tariff barriers.
In addition, disruptions in global supply chains – seen most clearly during the COVID-19 pandemic – and geopolitical tensions have directly impacted energy supply, affecting oil and gas prices.
The amended law will address both the challenges of international markets and supply chains, enabling better forecasting to support energy planning. “With accurate data, we can predict energy demand for the next one, two or even five years, allowing for more proactive production, supply and management,” Dung noted.
Statistics from the Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) show the country has over 2.5 million businesses in production, trade, services and agriculture. These account for around 82% of national electricity consumption, with industry alone using about 53%. In 2024, the country’s commercial electricity output reached 216 billion kWh, of which industry and services consumed 173 billion kWh. Some 4,000 key manufacturing firms alone accounted for 34% of national electricity use.
Economical and efficient energy use has been a consistent policy of the Party and State for many years. Even before the 2010 law was passed by the 12th National Assembly, the Government had introduced national programmes on energy efficiency.
Implementation has yielded positive results. In 2024, electricity savings reached about 2.64% of national consumption, exceeding the 2% target set by the Prime Minister’s Directive 20. Many key manufacturing sectors, such as cement and steel, have adopted solutions to cut electricity use, including recovering waste heat from production processes for reuse in kilns and power generation.
Despite rising electricity demand, peak capacity has not increased proportionately thanks to effective load shifting. Major energy users have moved consumption away from peak hours, improving the national load curve compared to previous years.
However, after nearly 15 years in force, the law has revealed shortcomings in keeping pace with rapid economic and global changes. The upcoming revision aims to enhance practicality, coherence and feasibility, helping Vietnam attract international resources to support energy-saving efforts and develop markets for energy-efficient products.
Nguyen Phuong Tuan, Deputy Chairman of the National Assembly’s Committee on Science, Technology and Environment, said the amendments will also help fulfil Vietnam’s commitments under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
Following the revision, the Ministry of Industry and Trade will align related regulations, with decrees and circulars providing detailed guidance for affected stakeholders. Once the amended law takes effect, major corporations, including EVN, plan to prepare five-year implementation strategies with specific targets to meet the new requirements./.
