The Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) has called on the Government of Vietnam to urgently extend the wind energy Feed-in-Tariff (FiT) scheme.
Vietnam’s wind industry is already facing a slowing of investment in 2020 because of uncertainty around the investment framework, and further delays to the FiT extension will hinder supply chain development and cost reduction in the emerging wind market, and ultimately undermine Vietnam’s goal of affordable, reliable and clean electricity
Vietnam is the fastest-growing wind energy market in South East Asia, with 500 MW of onshore and offshore wind power installed capacity, and an additional 4 GW due to be connected by 2025.
However, investor interest in wind project development in Vietnam has slowed significantly in 2020, as onshore wind projects typically require 2 years for development but the current FiT only applies to projects completed by November 2021. At least 1.65 GW of wind projects is forecast to be installed before the current FiT expires in November 2021.
To date, Vietnam’s wind market has benefited from increasingly strong flows of foreign and domestic capital. The 4 GW due to be installed by 2025 could generate up to 65,000 jobs and about US$4 billion in investment.
To realise this potential, the Government of Vietnam must act now to extend the wind energy FiT scheme and avoid a prolonged slowdown of clean energy investment and installation in the years ahead.