Power demand expected to surpass forecasts on early onset of hot weather

Power consumption in Vietnam this summer is expected to increase by 13% year-on-year between May and July, 9.6% higher than forecast, posing possible supply challenges.

This is because the weather is expected to become hot sooner than normal, and this could cause pressure on supply, especially in the north, Nguyen Quoc Trung, deputy director of the National Load Dispatch Center, said at a forum Monday.

The north needs around 25,000 MW of power, rising by 10% annually.

This means every year a new Son La hydropower plant, with a capacity of around 2,500 MW, needs to be built, a major challenge to the power sector, Trung said.

Between April and July this year peak demand in the region might reach 27,500 MW, up 17% year-on-year, while production would only rise 10%, he added.

But Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien has ordered state-owned power monopoly Vietnam Electricity (EVN) to “ensure there are no power shortages under any circumstances.”

To ensure supply, the National Load Dispatch Center has been storing water in dams. There are now 11 billion cubic meters, 2.7 times higher than a year ago.

EVN plans to generate higher-cost power such as from oil and liquefied natural gas.

Vo Quang Lam, its deputy director, said the Vietnam requires three times power as the global average to create its GDP, and so all consumers should conserve electricity.