Vietnam Limits Interest In Aussie Coal

Vietnam's Power Plan 8 was launched by their Prime Minister on May 15. It lowered the expected growth of coal-fired power to 30.13 gigawatts.

Vietnam has a plan. The plan is to increase coal-fired generation by 41% by 2030. This means they will need more coal. They will import coal from Australia and Indonesia. They will need to do this for at least seven years.

In 2016, a draft plan for power stations included many coal-fired ones. Now, they've been scrapped. This means that Vietnamese demand for coal won't grow as quickly as they thought.

Vietnam won't construct more coal plants after 2030. The nation aims to remove the technology by 2050.

Antonios Papaspiropoulos, the director of the World Coal Association, stated that the desire for coal is still high.

"We believe that every country has the right to choose their own energy sources. Coal is still in high demand worldwide because it's dependable, affordable, and helps with economic and social growth. Technology can also help make it more energy efficient."

We want to stop using unchecked coal and start using coal that has been cleaned with different technologies like high-efficiency low emissions, carbon capture and storage, and coal to hydrogen. There are many more options too.

"Did you know that most of the coal emissions can be removed using current processes and systems? Over 99% of them can be eliminated."

An energy expert from Watson Farley and Williams' Hanoi office, Matt Lorimer, stated that Power Plan 8 intends to increase Vietnam's installed energy generation capacity to 150.4 gigawatts by 2030. It's more than double the current capacity.

The Vietnamese energy market will change under a new plan. Coal's share will drop from 31% to 20%. This is because coal growth will be slower than other energy forms. Renewables will grow faster.

Vietnam is shifting towards wind power. Power Plan 8 will increase the use of wind power. Hydroelectricity was number one before.

White & Case law firm reported that wind energy only made up 0.54 gigawatts in 2020. However, they predict that it will increase to 27.88 gigawatts by 2030. Vietnam produced about 9 gigawatts of gas-powered energy in 2020, mostly from local gas sources.

Vietnam plans to increase gas-fired power generation to 37.33 gigawatts in the next decade. To sustain this, they will need to import gas.

By 2050, Vietnam wants 23 gigawatts of gas-fired generation to run on carbon-free hydrogen. However, Watson Farley and Williams think there's no law in Vietnam for making hydrogen and ammonia.

This weekend, Anthony Albanese, the Australian Prime Minister, is traveling to Vietnam. This is to make stronger security and economic connections in South-East Asia.