The state-run Vietnamese utility giant Viet Nam Electricity (EVN) has announced its power companies would stop purchasing electricity generated from rooftop solar power projects across Viet Nam developed after 31 December, until further notice from Viet Nam's national government.

The installation of rooftop solar photovoltaic panels onto the Hoa Vang Medical Centre

This means that the state utility will also handle requirements for connection and signing power purchase and sales contracts from solar power systems before the deadline.

The EVN said the Prime Minister's Decision No 13/2020/QD-TTg dated 6 April, 2020, on the solar power development mechanism in Viet Nam, with a focus on preferential feed-in tariffs (FIT) scheme for solar power purchase agreements, expires after 31 December, 2020. However, there are no new policies and guidance to replace this old scheme.

The mechanism, scale and prices for each type of rooftop solar power are still being studied by the National Department of Electricity and Renewable Energy.

The report on this is slated to be submitted to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) in the first quarter of 2021, and it will then be submitted to the Vietnamese Prime Minister for consideration regarding devising preferential policies for rooftop solar power in the upcoming period. Until this is done, there is no legal framework to determine rooftop power FITs.

Under the old power scheme, the purchase price of electricity from rooftop solar power projects is fixed at 8.38 cents per kWh, lasting for 20 years with connection projects, commercial operation before 31 December, 2020.

As of 25 December, there have been 83,000 rooftop solar power projects connected to the national grid with a total installed capacity of nearly 4,700MWp. The total power generation output to the grid from rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) projects has to date reached more than 1.13 billion kWh.

Located in the middle of sunny and windy Central Viet Nam with average sunshine hours per year up to 2,100 hours, and an average radiation intensity of 4.89kWh /m2 /day, Da Nang boasts a great potential for solar energy generation, especially rooftop solar panel installation.

According to the Da Nang Power One-member Limited Company (Da Nang PC), by 2025, Da Nang’s total rooftop solar power capacity will have reached 100.69 MW, about 4% of the total local electricity demand.

By TRIEU TUNG- Translated by A.T