The Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) has been warned not to allow power shortages to happen this year, according to Deputy Minister Hoang Trung Hai’s Government Office Document 22.


Apart from ensuring adequate power supplies for socio-economic development and people’s daily lives in 2014, Deputy Minister Hai also asked the EVN to well implement possible solutions to meet higher power demand in case the economy records greater growth than expected and must not let power shortage happen like what it did in previous years.


In 2013, the group fulfilled its task of providing adequate power for socio-economic development with increasingly high quality and the power system always had backup capacity, EVN General Director Pham Le Thanh was quoted as saying by the Vietnam Economic News online paper under the Ministry of Industry and Trade.


Also in 2013, nearly 2,500 MW was added to the power system, and many electricity transmission grid and distribution works put into operation. By the end of last year, water storage at hydroelectric dams had reached the approximately normal level. These are basic conditions for the EVN to accomplish its power production and supply tasks in 2014, he affirmed.


At the same time, the group also plans to tighten control of its capital and other assets, consolidate management boards of power projects to ensure progress and quality of the grid construction works. It will concentrate capital on urgent power projects, especially those to ensure power supply for the southern region, closely monitor the progress of power projects in Power Planning VII, promote site clearance, and accelerate payments of construction works that are fundamentally completed.


The Deputy Prime Minister also asked the power plants under the EVN and power generating companies to ensure operation, maintenance and repair quality, minimise the maintenance and repair works of thermal power units in the six-month dry season. The hydroelectric plants in coordination with localities will manage power generation, control flood, supply water and promote the useful effects of the works.


The EVN will prepare conditions in terms of grid infrastructure, information technology, telecommunications, human resources training, organisational restructuring of corporations and companies to well participate in the electricity market, imminently the competitive wholesale market that will be piloted from 2015.

The groups and corporations are expected to gradually become strong enterprises which can raise capital themselves in financial markets at home and abroad.


Deputy Prime Minister Hai emphasised that investment capital must be mobilised for transmission projects and this should be considered as a breakthrough in the power transmission grid investment. Solutions to operate the 220 - 500kV transmission grids of the national electricity system need to be reviewed, especially the systems in the southern region.

EVN General Director Thanh also said to optimise costs and electricity supply for the southern region, the EVN determined to implement solutions to reduce power production, transmission and distribution costs; speed up some important projects supplying electricity to the south, the grid works connecting to these thermal power centres and other urgent transmission and distribution projects in the south; and connect power transmission between the northern and southern key economic regions to ensure stability for transmission systems throughout the country.-VNA