Vietnam has opportunity to become global leader in renewable energy: Entrepreneur Magazine

Vietnam has opportunity to become global leader in renewable energy. (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) - Given Vietnam's high solar PV potential and ambitious green energy targets by 2050, the country has every opportunity to become a global leader in renewables, the EntrepreneurMagazine said on its e-version.

Eric Chin, the author of the article published on entrepreneur.comcited the World Bank as saying that Vietnam currently has the mostcomprehensive installed solar power capacity in Southeast Asia, with 16,500MWgenerated in 2020. Moreover, Vietnam was among the top 10 nations globally,with the most solar energy capacity installed in 2020.

There is also a compelling rationale forestablishing wind energy projects in Vietnam due to evidence that it has someof the greatest wind resources in the region with a potential of 311 GW,according to the article.

Market analysts believe that if Vietnam maintains itsrapid expansion of renewable energy, it will rise much higher in the rankings,perhaps overtaking nations like Australia and Italy in renewable energydevelopment and creative solutions.

The climate and topography of Vietnam make renewableenergy, particularly wind power, a significant investment prospect. Vietnam'svast wind resource is thanks to the country's long and narrow geographic shapeconsisting of over 3000 kilometers of coastline, including a mix of hills andmountains.

According to the World Bank, more than 39 percent ofVietnam has wind speeds more than 6 meters per second (m/s) at 65 meters,equivalent to 512 gigawatts (GW) of capacity. Vietnam assumes excellentpotential, with 8.6 percent of its land area suitable for large wind farms.

Vietnam has recently seen phenomenal solarphotovoltaic (PV) growth, which is just the beginning of the country's vastenergy transition away from coal. The country's solar PV capacity increasedfrom 86 MW in 2018 to about 16,500 MW in 2020.

Consequently, Vietnam has surpassed Thailand as theASEAN country with the greatest installed solar power capacity. Solar PVsystems provide roughly 10.6 TWh of electricity in 2020, accounting for nearly4 percent of total output.

Rooftop solar will account for approximately half ofVietnam's total solar capacity by 2030. With a promising solar energyproduction environment, international investors will have difficulty passing upsuch lucrative investment prospects, the author said./.

VNA