The Electricity of Vietnam says the group will put into use five new turbines at both thermo- and hydro-electric power plants within this year, which have a combined capacity of 1,656MW.

The Vinh Tan 2 thermo-electric power plant alone has a capacity of 1,200MW, while Turbine No.2 at the Hai Phong 2 thermo-electric power plant will add 300MW and the Song Bung 4 hydro-electric power plant, 156MW.

At the same time, the group will strive to complete work on a 500MW turbine at the Mong Duong 1 thermo-electric power plant and a 600MW generator at the Duyen Hai 1 thermo-electric power plant by the end of the year.

Meanwhile, five projects will be launched to build three more thermo-electric power plants and expand two hydro-electric power plants, which are expected to add 2,555MW to the group’s total output.

Besides power generation projects, EVN is accelerating the pace of construction on 192 transmission systems, particularly six key systems to ensure power supply for the southern region.

Another priority for this year is projects to upgrade the electricity transmission network in Hanoi .

The group has also set the target to complete several projects to bring electricity to poor and ethnic minority areas in Kien Giang, Tra Vinh, Soc Trang, Dien Bien and Lai Chau provinces.

Early this year, the Government requested Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) to ensure the national power supply from 2014.

In 2013, the group generated and purchased over 127.8 billion kWh of electricity, up 8.47 percent from 2012.-VNA