Borrowing 730 million USD to renovate the power transmission system

On the morning of February 10, in Hanoi, Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam Nguyen Van Binh, representing the Government of Vietnam, and Mr. Stephen P.Groff, Vice President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), signed the first loan agreement worth nearly 121 million USD for the Transmission Grid Investment Program with a total value of 730 million USD.

This project aims to upgrade the national power transmission grid, improve supply and meet the demand for electricity for daily life and industrial production.

Loan 1 is implemented over 3 years and started in 2012. The Ministry of Industry and Trade is the managing agency and Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) takes on the role of coordinator and supervisor; National Power Transmission Corporation (NPT) is the investor.

Illustration photo. (Source: Internet)

This loan will support the construction of nearly 648 km of 500kV lines and more than 100km of 220kV lines in the following sub-projects: Bac Ninh 2-Pho Noi 500/220kV Line; Pho Noi 500/220kV Substation and connecting lines; Song May-Uyen Hung 220kV Line; Phu My 2 Industrial Park 220kV Substation and connectors.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Governor Nguyen Van Binh said: The project aims to invest in the construction of 500kV and 220kV power lines and transformer stations in many localities across the country to help free up resources for new power plants; improve reliability, prevent overload, and ensure the smooth transmission capacity of the national power transmission system.

In addition, the project also contributes to improving NPT's management and operation capacity in effective and sustainable investment and financial planning activities.

ADB Vice President Stephen P.Groff said: Although Vietnam has made significant progress in expanding access to electricity, some rural and mountainous areas are still not connected to the grid. Without further expansion, this rate will continue to increase, especially in low-income areas where electricity consumption is lower.

On the other hand, to maintain economic development, Vietnam needs to provide sustainable and stable electricity; upgrade electricity production, transmission and distribution capacity.

Under the loan program, the ADB's expected capital of 730 million USD will be disbursed in 4 tranches and the first loan from ordinary capital sources will have a term of 25 years.

This program will help remove bottlenecks and reduce losses in transmission; ensure safety and quality of electricity supply; maintain the development momentum of the economy to further reduce the poverty rate./.

According to Vietnam+