Workers of Hoa Binh Power Company under the Northern Power Corporation are upgrading the rural electricity network in Mai Chau district, Hoa Binh province. (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam’s access-to-electricity index has increased for the sixth consecutive year, scoring 88.2 points in 2019, up 0.26 point compared to the previous year (87.94 points).
The result was announced by the Research Team – Doing Business of the World Bank in its Doing Business 2020 report accessing the competitiveness indicators in 2019 of 190 economies.
Vietnam continued to rank fourth in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in terms of access-to-electricity index, while maintaining the 27th position out of the 190 economies, thanks to the Vietnam Electricity (EVN)’s focus on promoting digital transformation and actively improving services for its customers.
Vietnam’s electricity industry maintained the second position in ASEAN in number of procedures and implementation time. Comparing to other countries which are members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), Vietnam’s access-to-electricity index is in Top 4.
In order to maintain the existing rankings and keep increasing the score, the EVN has drastically taken a number of digital transformation solutions in customer services. For example, 100 percent of the EVN’s power supply services are performed online, equivalent to level-4 public services.
At present, all procedures from registering services to signing contract and making payment can be carried out online.
The EVN has also diversified information channels towards transparency and publicity in regulations and procedures of the electricity sector as well as improved customer care services.
In 2019, it has improved one more step in launching all services on electronic platform and upgrading information technology infrastructure to provide better services for customers.
In September 2019, it piloted electricity bill payment on national public services portal, which will become official nationwide in November.
The EVN also offered its services on all online public service websites and public administration centres in all cities and provinces.
Up to now, the group has supplied electricity to all 8,902 communes nationwide, about 90.7 percent of them have achieved criteria on rural electrification.
EVN Deputy Director Vo Quang Lam said after 10 years of implementing the national target programme on building new-style rural areas for 2010-2020, the EVN and its member units have built medium and low voltage electricity networks for rural areas, serving the agricultural production, handicraft development, and aquatic breeding.
At the end of 2018, the EVN sold electricity to over 6.2 million households and upgraded the rural power network with a total cost of about 8 trillion VND, thus providing safe and stable electricity for households.
The firm has proposed the government arrange the state budget to implement a programme connecting rural areas with the national grid in 2013-2020.
Besides providing electricity for rural areas, it has conducted a series of projects to connect island districts and communes with the national power grid with total investment of over 7.5 trillion VND (322.5 million USD).
According to firm, the coverage of middle and low-voltage power line in island districts has increased up to 400 percent, meeting the demand of local residents who enjoy electricity with the same price as those in the mainland.
It revealed that since 1992, it has directly supplied electricity to 11 out of 12 island districts, and 81 out of 85 communes, serving 151,154 customers.
Since August 1, 2017, it has managed, performed maintenance and repair, and operated the power networks in Truong Sa archipelago and the DK1 Platform.
Recently, the EVN has received a certificate of merit from the Vietnam People’s Navy for outstanding performance in popularising policies on seas and islands./.
