Overview of renewable energy utilization in Thua Thien Hue, Vietnam

Lecturer: Prof. Md Azhar Uddin

Student: Nguyen Luong Chinh

Abstract

Renewable energy can contribute to a greener economy by lowering investment costs and
reducing greenhouse gas emissions. By 2030, the amount of renewable energy in the total amount
of primary energy in Thua Thien Hue province will be around 20%; by 2045, it will be 30%. In
this paper, the overview of renewable energy development was elaborated. The hydropower still
plays a major role in energy production, with a total capacity of 451.7 MW. While solar energy
and biomass are placed higher value with accountable plans, wind power and waste-to-energy
incineration plant has not still been taken into account properly. In addition, significant challenges
in laws and policies at national and provincial level should be addressed to achieve the goal of
energy transition following the updated NDC in 2020.

Keywords: renewable energy, energy transition, Thua Thien Hue Province

Introduction

Over the last three decades, Vietnam has experienced rapid economic and population growth,
evolving from one of the world's poorest countries to a lower middle-income, and can be seen as
one of the most energy-intensive economies in Southeast Asia (MOIT & DEA, 2017). On one
hand, fossil fuels represent a large portion of the energy demand, as a result, The energy sector in
Vietnam is responsible for half of the country's carbon emissions (Anna Chapman et al. 2019). In
2016, the World Health Organization estimated that over 60,000 deaths in Vietnam were caused
by air pollution and switching from fossil fuels to renewables would reduce emissions and their
health impacts (Breu et al. 2019). On the other hand, population and economic growth are putting
increasing strain on energy resources, emphasizing the need for a reliable and long-term energy
supply. Renewable energy, according to the Asia Pacific Energy Research Centre (APERC), can
help create a greener economy with significantly lower investment costs while also lowering
greenhouse gas emissions (APERC, 2019). Vietnam's renewable energy potential, particularly
solar and wind, is vastly underutilized.

Renewable energy and energy efficiency, in addition to possible energy sector investment
savings, can help Vietnam meet the SDGs. SDG 7 relates to clean and affordable energy, for
example. Vietnam's economy will shift away from fossil fuels and toward clean energy sources as
it transitions to renewables. Net energy imports have resulted from high energy demand, reducing
energy security. Fuel imports account for up to 3.8 percent of Vietnam's GDP, or around $7.7

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billion USD (Fuentes et al 2019). The PD7 from Vietnam clarifies the average annual changes in
installed power plant capacity as in figure 1 (ISF, 2019)

Figure 1: Average annual changes in installed power plant capacity

The central coast of Vietnam is humid and subtropical, with an annual average temperature of
about 25–27°C and an annual rainfall of about 1900mm, with October and November being the
wettest months (Ngo-Duc, 2014). As a result, Vietnam's coastal regions have a lot of wind
potential. Despite this, in 2016, wind and solar combined accounted for less than 1% of total
electricity generation (Fuentes et al 2019). In central Vietnam, Thua Thien Hue is home to more
than 100km of coastline and a number of deserted areas with flat terraces, facilitating the
construction of solar and wind power plants. In 2021, Thua Thien Hue People’s Committee has
issued the Plan No. 230/KH-UBND dated July 8th, 2021, on steering the strategy of power
development in Thua Thien Hue to 2030, towards 2045. The Plan stated that by 2030, the amount
of renewable energy in the total amount of primary energy will be around 20%; by 2045, it will be
30%, with the construction of one to two power plants (using modern technology). The Plan has
reflected the strong preference of Thua Thien Hue People’s Committee for renewable energy
development. It is vital to assess the possibility of the plan and identify the potential risks in plan
implementation. This paper aims to provide the overview of the current status of renewable energy
usages and some challenges in implementing the trajectory of power transformation and
development in Thua Thien Hue, Vietnam.

Methodology

The collection of secondary data was conducted as a major methodology through the desk
review of scientific studies, official articles, and other relevant information from governmental
agencies at all scales as well as media sources.

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Findings and Discussion

The current energy fuel mix includes fossil fuel resources of coal, crude oil, natural gas and
renewable resources of hydropower and biomass (MOIT & DEA 2017). While the development
of solar energy has been considered, the wind energy in Thua Thien Hue has not been placed
higher value up to now. To tackle the problem related to the municipal waste management, the
waste-to-energy concept is taken to account for investigation, which is the state-of-the-art of
renewable resources in Thua Thien Hue province.

Hydroelectric

Hydroelectric power is a major resource of energy in Thua Thien Hue. In 2020, there are 13
active hydroelectric plants with a total capacity of 451.7 MW, with 10 of them contributing over
1 billion kWh of electricity to the national power grid each year (VCEA, 2020). Thua Thien Hue
used to be assumed to have potential for and small-sized hydroelectric. However, its disadvantages
has been clarified and discussed to ensure that the power development plan will be along with the
sustainable development goals. Some small-sized hydroelectric with low efficiency were
suspended, meanwhile, the design of a number of hydropower projects were reviewed to reduce
the potential risks to human activities and environment.

Biomass

The biogas produced by household biogas plants is primarily used in the kitchen. The
efficiency of the stove determines the amount of energy that can be used for cooking. Other studies
have shown that biomass-burning stoves are significantly less efficient than biogas-burning stoves.
Furthermore, because biogas produces less smoke, it improves the air quality inside rural
households. As a result, using biogas has a significant positive impact on people's health. The
results of this study, which compared biogas and firewood global warming potential, show that
biogas has a significantly lower global warming potential per unit of energy supplied than
firewood. Hence, it can be concluded that biogas is a better alternative than firewood, for example,
as cooking fuel, and this conclusion advocates policy makers to promote the use of biogas
technology to combat climate change. As a result, it can be concluded that biogas is a superior
alternative to firewood as a cooking fuel, and that policymakers should encourage the use of biogas
technology to combat climate change (Roubik et al, 2020).

Solar energy

Thua Thien Hue region has a high solar radiation intensity of about 4.33 kWh/m2/day and an
average annual sunshine hour of up to 1893.6 hours per year (VNA, 2017). These are good
conditions for solar power development. A solar power project with an expected capacity of 35
MW that started operating in November 2018. The plant produced by 151.66 percent in its first
year of operation, demonstrating the enormous potential of solar power in the area. Currently, Thua

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Thien Hue province has other four projects with a total capacity of about 260 MWp waiting to be
added to the Power Development Plan, in addition to a 50 MWp solar power project that is under
construction and has been largely completed. Furthermore, the province's unused irrigation lakes,
hydropower reservoirs, and lagoons, totaling about 2,655 hectares, have the potential to develop
solar energy projects with a potential capacity of about 2,100 MWp (VCEA, 2020). The use of
solar thermal energy should be greatly promoted, with a particular focus on developing hot water
heaters for households, by conducting the research and developing hybrid solar power technology
with other energy sources.

Waste to energy

In 2018, the Provincial People's Committee approved the Phu Son waste to energy incineration
plant with an expected treatment capacity of 600 tons/ day. According to the plan, the incineration
plant will be built in 2020 and completed in 2021; however, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the
construction has not been completed and projected to first operate in the middle of the year 2023.
(CRET.Hue, 2021). The impacts and effectiveness of this incineration plant has not been
calculated so far.

Based on these findings, there are some challenges that can be addressed to ensure the national/
provincial plan of renewable energy development, including:

(i) Low tariffs combined with high investment costs in newer technologies;
(ii) Lack of qualified human resources; underdeveloped supporting industries;
(iii) Weak grid capacity; unbackable power purchasing agreement terms;
(iv) Delays in larger projects due to the complex regulatory framework;
(v) Lack of clarity in future energy prices.

Conclusion and Recommendations

Vietnam set an unconditional goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 9% from business-
as-usual (BAU) and a conditional goal of reducing emissions by 27% from BAU, depending on
international support (NDC, 2020). The development of renewable energy play a key role in
achieving the above goals. The next Power Development Plan (PDP8), as well as the planned
update of the NDC, provide important opportunities to align with a path toward a sustainable
energy future, including by revising the Renewable Energy Development Strategy and targets.
With the current status and potential of Thua Thien Hue about renewable energy utilization, the
People’s Committee should put more emphasis on solar and wind energy with sound management
systems of hydropower and incineration plant.

It is clear that in order to achieve the country's energy transition, Vietnam's laws and policies,
as well as Thua Thien Hue's plan and programs, must be coordinated and consistent, particularly
in terms of moving away from coal-fired power generation and avoiding future expansion.

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Furthermore, supporting industries are critical to the development and adoption of renewable
energy technologies. Government capital subsidies and incentives, such as tax breaks and
preferential loans, should be used to promote domestic SMEs. A competitive supporting industry
will aid in the reduction of renewable project investment costs. Finally, further research on
renewable energy should be promoted to provide the state-of-the-art information as reliable
references for government and interested private sectors.

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