Wind energy potentials in Vietnam

In addition to solar energy, wind energy is expected to help Vietnam catch up with the rapid growth in electricity demand in short and long term, with large expansion, prediction and low impact on the environment.

Vietnam has a great advantage in wind, with a coastline of more than 3000km and many islands with an average wind speed of 5m/s or more all year round. Regarding wind power, it is estimated that Vietnam can develop about 27 GW of onshore wind power with an average wind speed of 5.5 to 7.3 m/s. According to a recent study by the Vietnam Institute of Sea and Islands Research, the potential for wind energy at an altitude of 80 m above sea level with a wind speed of 8 m/s is 1.3 thousand GW. However, the development of wind power technology does not meet this potential.

Wind in Vietnam with an altitude of 65 m:

Wind power is one of the potential industries and develops sustainably in the future. However, wind power is relatively new in Vietnam, so there will be certain challenges for the success of a wind power project:

• Economy and finance: a successful wind power project requires a large investment fund. However, the current cost in wind power is quite high (about US$2,500/kW or VND50 million/kW). Although there are still some problems in the wind power price, many international financial institutions and investment funds recently have had many financial programs for renewable energy projects, lending for medium and long-term investments or on-lending ODA funds from the Government and international banks.
• Incomplete data on geography, tides, wind speed in regions: Currently, wind data in regions of Vietnam bears low reliability, synchronization and consistency. This leads to difficulties for the initial evaluation (pre-feasibility) of a wind power project. Investors have to conduct wind measurements 1-2 years before investment. Therefore, the Government should soon support relevant units to do high quality research, scale and application. This is also the basis for creating Vietnamese standards on design, construction, and quality acceptance of a wind power project.
• Administrative procedures and legal barriers: This is one of the biggest barriers, especially for foreign investors when they desire to access investment in the Vietnamese market. At present, policies on investment procedures, power purchase agreements and prices between the investor and Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) still need to be kept stable in the long run. The timely support of the Government is a decisive factor for the success of the project.

Given such challenges, PEC has been accompanying the investor in consulting on making supplemented plan, feasibility reports, designing, etc from the early stages of project. By participating in the first wind power projects in Vietnam and constantly updating the latest government policies to accurately advise on administrative procedures for investors, PEC has gained our partners trust such as B.Grimm, EDF, etc., contributing to the development of wind energy and bringing benefits of sustainable energy source to the country.