Vietnam wants to develop high-tech wind power plants

Vietnam wants to develop high-tech wind power plants

Fifty wind power projects have been registered in Vietnam so far, but only
four of them, with the total capacity of 159.2 MW, have been put into
commercial operation.

According to the World Bank, Vietnam has thevgreatest potential in the
region in developing wind power. Vietnam's wind power reserves are estimated
at 513.360 MW, or six times higher than the total electricity capacity by
2020.

The bank's research found that 8.6 percent of Vietnam's mainland area has
great potential, favorable for the installation of large-scale turbines.

Renewable energy, especially wind power, is believed to be the solution to
Vietnam's increasingly high demand for power.
While Vietnam has just started to develop wind power, the world has gained
great success in the field. According to the Global Wind Energy Council
(GWEC), the total wind power capacity in the world has reached 432.42 GW by
the end of 2015, an increase of 17 percent over 2014 and higher than nuclear
power capacity.

By early 2016, General Electric (GE) had spent $2 billion on wind power
research and development.

The conglomerate now utilizes digital technology in renewable energy and
wind power. With 'digital twins', GE Renewable Energy can find the positions
which can receive biggest power before installing turbines in the field.
This approach can help increase the capacity of each wind power farm by 20
percent, or $100 million in each life cycle of a 100 MW farm.

With special wind turbine technology, GE offers many solutions to improve
economic efficiency for plants. Its propeller manufacturing technology is
also very advanced, thanks to propellers that cause less noise, have lighter
weight and bring higher efficiency.

To date, GE has installed 30,000 wind turbines with total capacity of 50 GW
in 35 countries. In Vietnam, it has a turbine factory in Normura industrial
zone in Hai Phong City. Besides 60Hz wind power generators and equipment for
export to North America, the factory also makes 50Hz generators for Vietnam.

Experts said Vietnam now has big opportunities to speed up the program on
wind power development with GE renewable energy technology under the MOU
between GE and Vietnam's Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) signed during
US President Obama's visit to Vietnam.

GE and MOIT decided that at least 1,000 MW of wind power would be provided
by 2025, enough for 1.8 million people. A part of the MOU has been realized
by the signing of a cooperation agreement between GE and Mainstream
Renewable Power on the implementation of some wind power plants in Vietnam.

In mid-November 2016, GE, Mainstream Renewable Power and Phu Cuong Group
signed a cooperation agreement on the building and operation of the 800MW
Phu Cuong project in Soc Trang province.

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Link to Original Article:
http://english.vietnamnet.vn/fms/science-it/172864/vietnam-wants-to-develop-
high-tech-wind-power-plants.html

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John Diecker
APT Consulting Group Co., Ltd.

www.aptthailand.com