A petrol station in HCM City (Photo: VNA) Vietnam Electricity (EVN) was told to speed up theconstruction and implementation of major power projects, including renewableenergy, to ensure enough power for the country's crucial industries. Inaddition, priority should be given to connecting isolated and remotecommunes to the national power and telecommunication networks.
MoIT, the ministry in charge of Vietnam's power sector, was toldto quickly finish and submit the country's Power Planning VIII to the centralgovernment for review.
The PM said the country's top priority in the short term is tofocus on boosting exports, especially agriculture products to China andneighbouring countries, to maintain momentum for economic recovery.
Fuel market
Fuel prices should be adjusted every Thursday, with the onlyexception being the first, the second and the third day of the Tet holiday, said MoIT in its latestproposal to the government, along with several other measures in an attempt tobetter regulate the fuel market.
According to MoIT, shorter price cycles are better at keepingdomestic prices closer to the global oil prices, even during holidays (except Tet) to minimise the risk of marketdisruptions. In the event of major changes in the international market, thecentral government reserves the right to intervene in the market to ensure therights and benefits of businesses and consumers alike are well protected.
The proposal was a response to fuel traders' grievance last yearover how long it took for prices to be adjusted in the domestic market, whichoften left them on the backfoot with little preparation for significant hikesin global oil prices.
In addition, the ministry said it had started a process to reviewthe current conditions for businesses to join the fuel market. Industryinsiders and experts, in recent months, have been voicing conflicting opinionsover the state of the current market regulations.
Reducing or easing entry barriers will likely result in a highernumber of traders and retailers, increased competition, a step closer to amarket-oriented system and by the central government's general policy toencourage the development of the private sector and small-to-medium-sizedenterprises (SMEs).
On the other hand, raising entry barriers will likely help ensurestandards set by the central government for fuel trading, which is expected totighten in the coming years.
The ministry said it currently favours a middle option to maintainmost, if not all, of the current conditions, but they must be streamlinedand clearly defined to avoid confusion and misinterpretation, and encourage theprivate sector to participate in the market.
"It's our opinion that the current conditions have servedwell in monitoring and managing the domestic fuel market," said aspokesperson from the ministry.
Vietnam's domestic fuel market is under the management of a jointmechanism between the MoIT and the Ministry of Finance, with the formeroverseeing day-to-day activities.
The mechanism has long been criticised as inefficient and slow toadapt to major market events, as made evident last year when a series ofdisruptions took place in the global oil market, which resulted in long waitsat the pumps and several fuel stations shutting down across the country./.
VNA
