Construction of the 1.17 billion USD Vung Ang No.1 thermo electric power plant began in the central province of Ha Tinh on Aug. 27.

Invested by the Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam), the project is being built as part of the National Power Development Plan for the 2006-2015 period. It is the first coal-fuelled power plant to be built in the northern central region.

Once fully operational, in the first quarter of 2013, the 1,200 MW plant will supply nearly 7.2 billion kWh a year to the national grid.

The Vietnam Machinery Installation Corporation (Lilama) is the contractor on the project, which is located in the Vung Ang Economic Zone in Ky Anh district./.