Vietnam feels the heat of power shortages
HANOI - Soaring temperatures are causing power shortages in Ho Chi
Minh City as locals reach for fans and air-conditioning units to escape the
heat. The shortfall has prompted Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) to
fast-track new plans to increase transmission and generation capacity.
Local power officials say consumption of electricity in Ho Chi Minh City in
the dry season usually reaches an average of between 18 to 20 million
kiloWatt hours (kWh) per day. But heatwave conditions have sent power
consumption as high as 22 million kWh in the past few days, with peak
usage hitting a record of 22.4 million kWh on Tuesday. Power officials
admit that the city has been in danger of peak time shortages for the last
couple of months - especially from 9 to 10 am.
To keep up with demand, the city's power sector has been forced to run all
inner-city transformer stations at full capacity, or sometimes beyond. This
has led to serious technical problems at several stations.
In a bid to tackle the situation, EVN is planning to start work on a major
network of 500 KV power lines in July, extending across several southern
provinces. EVN deputy general-director Tran Viet Ngai says the
Pleiku-Phu Lam network, which is due to be completed in 2003, will ease
the pressure on the overloaded 500 KV north-south system. The new
network will transmit electricity produced at the Yaly Hydro - power Plant
- and other sources including the Ham Thuan-Da Mi, Hinh River and Dai
Ninh facilities - to the 500KV Pleiku power station, from where it will be
distributed to seven provinces via the national grid.
Meanwhile, local electricity suppliers are seeking to prevent 110 KV
transmission lines from burning out due to overloading. Last month, they
had to temporarily suspend the supply of electricity for more than 10 lines
with a combined transmission capacity of about 53,000 kWh. The heaviest
burden is falling on the two transformer stations controlled by Power
Transmission Company No 4 (PTC4), despite the fact that one station has
just doubled its previous capacity of 125 MVA.
To ease the burden on these stations, EVN has allowed PTC4 to install a
new transformer with a transmission capacity of 125 MVA at the Sai Gon
Transformer Station. This should help ease dependency on the two
overloaded stations.
The recent blackouts in the city have severely impacted on the lives of
residents and businesses, and show no sign of letting up. Industry insiders
say the slow development of new power projects is a major factor behind
the current shortage. "We are having serious difficulties in raising enough
funds to carry out our projects," lamented one power project owner.
Another problem is said to be the lack of coordination between responsible
authorities and the local electricity sector. This has resulted in
time-consuming red tape and an overlap in management and inspections.
Inaccurate estimates of demand by the Ho Chi Minh City power industry
are also being blamed for the blackouts.
In the last quarter of 2000 several new power development projects have
been put into operation. These include three turbines with a combined
capacity of 720 MW in the Phu My Gas-fueled Power Plant No 1, and a
150 MW turbine in the Da Mi Hydro-power Plant. The capacity of some
available plants including the Yaly Hydro - power Plant is also slated for
an increase.
Local power officials say these developments, plus the new EVN project
to build 500 KV power lines, would ensure that dry season power
shortages will not be a perennial problem.
The new power line project is part of EVN Fifth Electricity Development
Masterplan, which is taking shape despite concerns over inadequate
investment capital. Under the masterplan, EVN should build a number of
new lines to distribute power to high demand areas and build new
infrastructure to serve socio-economic growth. The plan estimates the
nation's total energy demand will reach 78.4 billion kWh per year by 2010 -
three times last year's figure.
In addition, the national grid needs to be expanded considerably to
distribute power from proposed plants at Phu My, Ca Mau, Dai Ninh and
Can Don. Experts say that by 2010 the national grid will need to cover
297,000 kilometers, with 500 KV lines making up 2,400 km.
"Besides the Pleiku - Phu Lam lines, EVN is preparing to invest in other
networks such as Phu My - Nha Be - Phu Lam, Pleiku - Dung Quat - Da
Nang and O Mon - Phu Lam," said Ngai.
When the Son La Hydropower Plant is put into operation in 2010, the
corporation will have to build a 500 KV network linking the northern
mountainous province of Son La to the national grid.
In order to complete its expansion program, EVN will need investment of
roughly US$1.5 billion per year. The company will receive some funding
from the state budget, but will depend on international investment for a
significant proportion of the capital. A campaign to tap new sources of
investment capital and encourage private sector participation in the
industry is already on the drawing board.
Asia Times on line - May 18, 2001.
|