Prime Minister: 'Whoever cuts off the electricity will be removed from office'

Sharing at the conference on January 17, Mr. Nguyen Duc Chung - Chairman of Hanoi People's Committee expressed his concern that Hanoi is at risk of power shortage in 2019. "The Ministry of Industry and Trade needs to speed up power transmission projects to serve the capital's electricity. If these key projects are not completed in time, Hanoi will have a power shortage in 2020-2021," Mr. Chung worried.

In response to the concerns of Hanoi leaders, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc emphasized, "We cannot let the Ministry of Industry and Trade or EVN announce a power outage. In this day and age, we still have power outages. Whoever cuts off the power, we will remove them from their positions."

According to the report of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the demand for electricity in 2019 increased by more than 10% compared to 2018, the electricity produced and purchased in 2019 was about 232.5 billion kWh. This agency said that it will ensure the progress of power source projects assigned in the adjusted Power Plan VII, especially thermal power projects in the South.

To ensure primary energy sources for power generation, the electricity industry will optimally exploit energy sources, especially hydropower, gas fuel, domestic coal and imported coal; put new power plants into operation on schedule and stably.

Impressed with Vietnam's access to electricity index in 2018, which increased by 37 places, placing it among the top in ASEAN, the Prime Minister said that the electricity industry needs to continue to improve to raise this index. Regarding the goal of ensuring enough electricity, he asked the Ministry of Industry and Trade to "have an immediate solution, not to wait until the cows are gone before building a barn".

Regarding electricity prices, Mr. Nguyen Duc Chung suggested that the Ministry of Industry and Trade should have a preferential price mechanism for renewable energy sources, especially waste-to-energy projects. "Electricity prices can be higher than the purchase price from fossil-fuel power plants, to encourage the use of electricity from renewable sources," he suggested.