Vietnam: Not yet turned the wind, the sun ... into money!

Lack of policies to promote full exploitation of renewable energy sources, while energy consumption is wasteful and ineffective . That is the problem raised at the Seminar " Sustainable energy development in Vietnam ". held on June 14 at the Goethe Institute, Hanoi.

About 80 domestic scientists and some foreign energy experts participated in the workshop.

Speaking at the seminar, Prof. Pham Duy Hien said that the electric energy source in our country is not used effectively, there are still many losses and waste. Losses can be as high as 15.8%, while in many countries around the world the loss is only about 7-9%.

Prof. Pham Duy Hien (standing, right outside) is discussing with German experts about using renewable energy in Vietnam.( Photo: Ngoc Huyen )

The level of electricity loss is so high that in the next 5 years, every 1% reduction in losses will result in 3.4 GWh of electricity (Giga watt-hours), equivalent to the output of a factory of 500-600 MW.

Meanwhile, other fossil energy sources such as coal, crude oil and gas reserves are not enough to meet the demand for electricity development after 2020 .

Another scientist, Mr. Nguyen Thuong also said that power loss in transmission and distribution in Vietnam is currently about 12%, in some countries in the region about 7%.

To make a value-added USD, Vietnam consumes 30-40% more energy than regional countries. Vietnam cannot maintain high GDP growth with high energy intensity today

Surprisingly, so far, there are still many other sources of energy called 'renewable energy' (or reconstituted energy) such as wind, solar, biomass fuel (from plants, animals). Although abundant, it has not been promoted to supplement fossil fuel sources that are depleted or developed yet to keep up with demand.

Renewable energy: Fast, many, good, cheap! Attending the seminar "Sustainable energy development in Vietnam", on the German side, there was a guest guest. Herrmann Scheer (German Parliament Member, President of EUROSOLAR and Chairman of the International Commission on Renewable Energy), Mr. Roman Ritter of the Technical Cooperation Organization of Germany and Vietnam, together with representatives of the Ministry of Industry , Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Planning and Investment and scientific associations in Vietnam.

According to Dr. The Herrmann Scheer renewable energy has great potential, can offer applications faster than other energies.

Moreover, the development of renewable energy is simpler, saving the cost of building stations, not destroying the environment, escaping the dependence on fuel imports and the risk of accidents is negligible. The characteristics of renewable energy are cheaper and cheaper after depreciation, not complex and easy to operate and build in a short time, if it is wind power (wind power) factory. It only takes 1 week to use. According to Mr. Nguyen Quang Khai, Director of the Center for Energy and Environment, Vietnam currently has more than 25 million tons of energy wood biomass, more than 53 million tons of agricultural by-product biomass . can produce tens of millions. tons of energy.

In terms of vegetable oil, while some countries have studied from vegetable oil to produce biofuel (biodiesel) mixed with gasoline to reduce dependence on oil, we have not had comprehensive research and evaluation. about this energy source.

In terms of solar energy, Vietnam has an average number of sunshine hours of 2000-2500h / year with an average solar energy of about 150kCal / cm2 / year. The potential of solar energy can reach about 43.9 billion tons of energy annually.

About the wind, although Vietnam has plenty of windy places, there are only a few wind power plants with negligible capacity . According to a report at the workshop, there were domestic investors investing in wind power plants but having policy obstacles, 5-6 years have passed and the factory has not been completed.

Many scientists have expressed frustration that Vietnam has not announced an official national energy policy. Currently, the Ministry of Industry is still submitting to the Government through the national energy policy (NLF).

So far, Vietnam still lacks a National Energy Regulatory and Regulatory Authority. Therefore, the development of energy is not synchronized among sub-sectors, between GCs (oil and gas, electricity, coal).

Scientists recommend that the Government should set up a National Energy Policy Committee to regulate and regulate energy sector activities chaired by the Prime Minister with a strong policy office. national help.

Ngoc Huyen-Nong Khac Italian