Halcom Vietnam Sharing Experiences from Hau Giang Solar Power Project at Solar Energy Future Vietnam Virtual 2021

On August 27, 2021, Halcom Vietnam attended the Solar Energy Future Virtual Vietnam 2021 organized by Leader Associates.  In the conference, representatives from Halcom Vietnam shared lessons learned from the implementation of the Hau Giang solar power project of which the company was the Investor and discussed challenges in solar power project investment in Vietnam. The conference has the participation of policy makers, project developers, investors, experts and domestic and international product & solution providers for the purpose of networking, updating market information, discussing and exchanging experiences on solar power.

At the conference, speakers and attendees shared about the role of solar power in Vietnam’s long-term energy strategy, discussed and removed legal and policy barriers , learned from practical experiences in implementing solar power projects in the region, as well as grasped the potential of markets that are leading in the hot Hydrogen revolution trend globally.

As one of the keynote speakers in the conference, Mr. Nguyen Quang Huan, Chairman of of Halcom Vietnam JSC shared his practical experience on implementing solar power projects with Hau Giang solar 35 MWp Power Plant invested by his own company. The project started in June 2020, with construction completed and officially operated in December 2020. Mr. Huan mentioned the main issues encountered by the project such as compensation for site clearance; The Covid-19 pandemic causing delay in the transportation of machinery and equipment, making domestic investors and contractors disoriented in mobilizing resources, increasing costs (operating costs, warehousing, etc.). …); coordination between main contractor & sub-contractor; difficulties in the bank’s disbursement; as well as unexpected shortcomings from the Government such as no timely mechanism for the FiT when the deadline coming close or the power cutting due to overload of the grid at some time and in some localities in which there is Hau Giang. Mr. Huan emphasized that the lesson to be learned is that it is necessary to prioritize the settlement of site clearance in order to minimize conflicts arising between the investor and the people in the transmission line area; allocate financial resources and making cost estimates, take into account possible force majeure situations such as the COVID-19 pandemic; build an active and dynamic project management team; power purchase and sale contracts also need to be reviewed and negotiated towards equal cooperation.

Mr. Nguyen Quang Huan, Chairman of Halcom Vietnam sharing his experience in implementing solar power projects with the evidence of Hau Giang 35 MWp solar power plant
at Solar Energy Future Vietnam 2021.

The virtual panel discussion session on the challenges of solar power project investment in Vietnam had Mr. Nguyen Hoang Hai, CFO of Halcom Vietnam participated with representatives from Scatec ASA, BayWa re, Marshal Global Renewable Power, Duane Morris VN. The panelists discussed and gave opinions on the bidding mechanism for solar power projects in the near future, after the FiT mechanism ends; Risk assessment of cutting power output and energy storage batteries as the current trend. Mr. Hai said that competition will be fiercer, which requires lower investment costs and local businesses need to find partners – especially foreign partners with strong potential and strong profile to accompany them to the joint venture project. However, the project implementation procedures will not be too different from what has been done. The risk of cutting power output will be higher in localities with a large number and total capacity of projects and when the power demand of factories decreases during the harsh COVID-19 period.

Mr. Hoang Quang Hai, CFO of Halcom Vietnam sharing his opinion on the solar power bdding mechanism in the near future.

Hau Giang solar power plant – the first solar power project of Halcom Vietnam, which was professionally and methodically deployed and put into operation in a short time (under 1 year). This is also the second renewable energy project of Halcom Vietnam in the direction of clean energy generation and sustainable development, with the goal of reaching a capacity of 500 MW of renewable energy within the next 5 years.

Hau Giang 35MWp Solar Power Plant (Hoa An commune, Phung Hiep district) invested by Halcom Vietnam.