Massive new solar projects planned in Vietnam

Massive new solar projects planned in Vietnam

Vietnam’s Dak Lak province has greenlighted a series of MoUs, thus making various new photovoltaic projects possible. These mount up to a remarkable 3.3 billion USD worth of new plants.

 

Vietnam is taking big steps towards extending their solar sector. According to Reuters, 3.3 billion USD worth of new projects were greenlighted this month.

 

Various projects planned

Among these new projects are a series of MoUs and licences for a raft of solar PV projects, which include a reported 300 – 500 MW solar farm to be developed by U.S. power firm AES Corporation and a mooted 2 GW project by local firm Xuan Thien Daklak, Reuters reports. The projects will mainly be realized in the Dak Lak province, a region that benefits from extraordinary solar irradiation.

All new projects together might add as much a 3 GW to Vietnam’s solar capacity over the next few years.

 

New major plant and solar farm coming

A new solar plant with a capacity of 2 GW will contribute largely to the above mentioned addition. The plant will be constructed in the Central Highlands of Dak Lak. A provinicial government license has already been issued. The project is believed to attract investments of as much as 2.2 billion USD, says Reuters.

Apart from that, a new solar farm is planned as well. The US power developer AES Corporation received a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) from the local government for its proposed solar farm of 300 to 500 MW, which is believed to require investments of 750 million USD.

But there are also some smaller projects in the pipeline. One of them is a 45 million USD PV project proposed by South Korean developer Solar Park Global. Local developers are making plans as well: the Vietnamese company Long Thanh Infrastructure Development and Investment Company has drawn up plans to build a 250 MW solar installation.

 

Developments are making Vietnam are growing player on solar market

Up until recently, Vietnam’s main role on the solar market was that of a manufacturing site for foreign companies, many of them Chinese. JA Solar invested 320 million USD in a solar cell facility in November, followed by GCL, who are putting plans of a 600 MW cell fab into action, to name just two examples. Plans for JA Solar’s facilty were recently halted due to bureaureatic challenges.

With these new and partly local projects, however, Vietnam can now start claiming a role of a player in the global solar market, instead of being played.