CCC164Vietnam - Prospect CCT in Indonesia

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Prospects for coal and clean coal technologies in Indonesia
Technical Report · June 2009

DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.28157.87521
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Prospects for coal and clean coal
technologies in Vietnam
Paul Baruya
CCC/164
February 2010
Copyright © IEA Clean Coal Centre
ISBN 978-92-9029-484-9
Abstract
Today, Vietnam’s energy economy is largely served by traditional biofuels and oil products. Within the power generating sector,
hydropower and gas-fired power dominate. However, Vietnam still maintains a 40 Mt/y coal industry, parts of which have recently
undergone a long overdue programme of renovation and expansion. Vietnam has been a successful exporter of anthracite, with
more than half of the country’s production being shipped or barged to steel mills in Japan or power stations in southern China, as
well as most other Far Eastern coal importers. In coming years, the industry is due to take a different form. In recent years,
opencast mining accounted for around 60% of production, but these mining methods could be phased out as reserves become
more difficult and costly to extract. Consequently, a shift to underground mining is expected, with a greater emphasis on more
modern and mechanised production techniques.
Coal is located mainly in the coalfields in Quang Ninh in the north easternmost province of Vietnam. Some lower rank reserves
located within the Red River coalfields, close to the existing anthracite operations, may yield many more millions of tonnes of
coal for exploitation. There is even the possibility that underground coal gasification could be exploited in the deeper reserves of
the Red River Basin, further emphasising the importance of this coalfield to the future of the country’s coal industry.
While coal production could rapidly change in future years, the power generation sector is also transforming with the country’s
12,000 MWe development programme for new coal-fired power capacity. The economy suffers from a threat of power shortages
due to a lack of generating and transmission capacity, while inefficiencies blight both energy production and end-users. Delivering
power to the regions of growth remains difficult as the economy and the demand for power outpaces power generation. While
hydroelectric power is being pursued, coal is therefore becoming a growing factor in the future prosperity of the Vietnamese
economy.
Acronyms and abbreviations
$ US dollar
ACFB atmospheric circulating fluidised bed
ADB Asian Development Bank
ARA Amsterdam/Rotterdam/Antwerp, a major coal hub for European coal imports
ASEAN Association of Southeast Asian Nations (formed 1967)
BAT best available technology
bbl barrel of crude (often quoted on a per day basis)
bcm billion cubic metres (of natural gas) or bank cubic metres (of overburden removal for opencast coal mining)
boe barrel of oil equivalent
BFG blast furnace gas
billion thousand million, 109
Btu/kWh British thermal units per kilowatt hour
BWE bucket wheel excavator
°C degrees Celsius (multiply by 1.8 and add 32 to convert to Fahrenheit)
CBM coalbed methane
CCGT combined cycle gas turbine (also commonly known as GTCC)
CCS carbon capture and storage
CDM clean development mechanism
CFB circulating fluidised bed
CHP combined heat and power (also known as co-generation)
CIA US Central Intelligence Agency
CIF cost, insurance, and freight
CO2 carbon dioxide
dmmf dry mineral matter free basis
dwt deadweight
EIA Energy Information Administration, US Department of Energy
ESP electrostatic precipitator (for particulate removal)
EVN Electricité de Vietnam
FGD flue gas desulphurisation (for SO2 removal)
FOB free-on-board
FTS floating transfer station
FY financial year
GDP gross domestic product
GHG greenhouse gas
GJ gigajoule
GRIPS National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (Japan)
GT gas turbine
GWe gigawatt of electrical output capacity (1000 MWe)
GWh gigawatt hour (1000 MWh; 106 kWh)
h/d hours per day
ha hectare
IC internal combustion (typically a diesel reciprocating engine)
IEA International Energy Agency, Paris
IEA CCC IEA Clean Coal Centre, London
IGCC integrated gasification and combined cycle
IMF International Monetary Fund
IPO initial public offering
IPP independent power producer/production/plant
JI joint implementation
JICA Japan International Cooperation Agency
JSC joint stock company
kcal/kg kilocalorie per kilogramme (multiply by 0.004187 to get MJ/kg)
kgU kilogrammes of uranium
km kilometre
kt kilotonnes
kV kilovolt
kWe kilowatt of electrical output capacity
kWh kilowatt hour
2 IEA CLEAN COAL CENTRE

Acronyms and abbreviations
LHV lower heating value

LNG liquified natural gas, a form of natural gas at 163°C temperature and 125 kPa low temperature for the purposes
of long distance bulk transportation using cryogenic ocean vessels
MEMR The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (Indonesia)
MJ/kg megajoule per kilogramme (divide by 0.004187 to get kcal/kg)
Mbbl/d million barrels per day
MOI Ministry of Industry
MOSTE Ministry of Science, Technology, and Environment
MONRE Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment
MPa mega Pascals
MPI Ministry of Planning and Investment
Mt million metric tonnes
Mtce million tonnes of coal equivalent (multiply by 0.697 to get Mtoe)
Mtoe million tonnes of oil equivalent
MWe megawatt of electrical output (1000 kWe)
MWh megawatt hour (1000 kWh)
MWth megawatt thermal capacity
NEDO New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (Japan)
NOx nitrogen oxides
OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (see Geographical Coverage for country listing)
O&M operation and maintenance
OLC overland conveyer
OPEC Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (based in Vienna, Austria)
PC power companies
pf pulverised fuel (hard coal)
PPA power purchase agreement
PPI producer prices index
PPP purchasing power parity (a basis for comparing GDP to reflect living costs)
PV Petrovietnam (also known as PVN)
RAR reasonably assured resources (typically refers to uranium deposits)
R/P reserves to production ratio
RM reserve margin
ROM run-of-mine, typically refers to raw mined material
Rp Indonesian Rupiah
SC supercritical (typical steam pressure <22.1 25 MPa; main steam and reheat temperatures 540–580°C)
SCR selective catalytic reduction (for NOx reduction)
SIDA Swedish International Development Corporation
SO2 sulphur dioxide
t metric tonne or 1000 kg (x 0.9844 = long ton; x 1.1025 = short ton)
t/h tonnes per hour
tcf trillion cubic feet (of natural gas or equivalent methane deposit)
TFC total final consumption
TJ terajoules
TPES total primary energy supply (includes coal, oil, gas, hydro, other renewables, nuclear power)
TWh terrawatt hour (1000 GWh, 106 MWh, 109 kWh)
UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
U3O8 uranium oxide (ore)
UCG underground coal gasification
UNDP United Nations Development Programme
UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
USC ultra supercritical (typical steam pressure >25 MPa; main steam and reheat temperatures >580°C)
VAT value added tax
VND Vietnam (Viet Nam) Dong
VRC Vietnam Railway Corporation
WEC World Energy Council
Prospects for coal and clean coal technologies in Vietnam 3

Contents
Acronyms and abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1.1 Key coal facts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1.2 Geographical profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2 A brief political history . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3 An economy in rapid transition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
4 Institutions and energy policy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

4.1 The National Energy Development Strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.2 Overview of Vietnam’s coal industry policy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.3 Overview of the Vietnam electricity market policy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
5 Primary energy supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

5.1 Biomass – still the dominant fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
6 Energy resources of Vietnam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

6.1 Oil resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
6.2 Natural gas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
6.3 Hydroelectricity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
6.4 Uranium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
6.5 Renewables and geothermal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
7 Coal resources and reserves in Vietnam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

7.1 Where the coal is found . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
7.2 Anthracite reserves. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
7.3 Prospective reserves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
7.4 Coal geology and quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
8 Coal resources and reserves in Vietnam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
9 Coal production trends for Vietnam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

9.1 Utilisation of coal mine capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
9.2 Coal supply trends – domestic production and world trade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
9.3 Coal imports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
10 Methods of mining coal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

10.1 Opencast coal mining. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
10.2 Underground coal mining . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
10.3 Labour productivity – considerable potential for improvement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
11 Estimating the cost of coal production in Vietnam. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

11.1 Making a loss from Vietnamese end-users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
11.2 Deriving the component costs of production. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
11.3 Deriving end-user prices from Vietnamese export coal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
12 Inland transport and port infrastructure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

12.1 Truck and rail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
12.2 River and canal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
12.3 Port export capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Contents
13 Environmental standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
13.1 Opencast mining . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
13.2 Coal washeries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
13.3 Other environmental issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
14 Electricity demand and generation trends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

14.1 Prospects for growth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
14.2 Sectoral demand for electricity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
14.3 Future trends in electricity demand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
15 Electricity supply in Vietnam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

15.1 Structure of the electricity market – the monopoly of EVN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
15.2 Power transmission network – system losses remain high . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
15.3 Local power distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
15.4 Blackouts – the recurring theme in developing Asia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
16 Power generating capacity in Vietnam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

16.1 Existing coal-fired capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
16.2 Coal – the preferred method of reliable power generation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
16.3 The Sixth Power Development Plan – 15 GWe of new capacity by 2013 . . . . . . . . . . . 50
16.4 The advent of developing coal import projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
16.5 Projections for power generation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
16.6 Reserve margin in crisis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
17 The impact of future power generation on coal demand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
18 Power plant efficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
19 Coal-fired power and cleaner coal technologies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

19.1 Combustion of ‘difficult’ fuels. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
19.2 Circulating fluidised bed technology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
19.3 Emissions control at Vietnamese coal-fired stations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
19.4 Underground coal gasification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
19.5 Coalbed methane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
20 Future coal demand scenarios and supply issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

20.1 The role of non-power sectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
20.2 Coal supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
20.3 Future trends in coal-fired technology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
20.4 Co-operation agreements with foreign countries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
21 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
22 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

1 Introduction
1.1 Key coal facts eastern side of the Indochinese peninsular bordering China in
the north, Laos in the northwest and Cambodia in the south
Total coal production (2009 estimate): 43 Mt west. The South China Sea makes up the entire eastern coastal
Total coal demand (2008 estimate): 20-25 Mt border of the country.
Exports (2008 estimate): 20 Mt
Imports (2006): 0.3 Mt With a population of 84 million, the country is the 13th most
Recoverable reserves (2006 estimate): 2000–3000 Mt populous in the world, similar to the populations of
Port capacities (2008 estimate): 34 Mt Philippines and Germany. Some 88% of the population is
ethnically Vietnamese, with 12% being made up of Chinese,
This report on Vietnam forms one in a range of reports Thai, and other groups. According to the FT (2004), more
covering coal and clean coal prospects in the major countries than half the population is Buddhist, with some 7% being
which comprise the Association of South East Asian Nations Catholic, and 38% of other religions or non-religious. Deaths
(ASEAN). Vietnam was last researched by the IEA CCC in resulting from past military conflicts means that older
1995 in a study entitled Asian Coal Prospects to 2010 generations of women outnumbered men. Women form a high
(Daniel, 1995). Vietnam is an established player in the proportion of the labour force and have also risen to greater
international market for coal, most notably for its export of political prominence in past years.
anthracite coal.
The most populated areas are along the Red and Mekong
The report examines the country’s energy reserves, with a Rivers. Vietnam’s geography is such that the north has cool
particular focus on coal reserves, coal quality, and winters while the south is tropical. Temperatures are typically
distribution. The report also looks at the trends in coal 10–30ºC. Central provinces are affected by typhoons, the
production, consumption, and devotes analysis to coal-fired northern Red River delta is subject to drought, and the
power generation, within the context of the entire generating Mekong delta in the south suffers from heavy flooding.
fleet of power stations. Coal combustion technologies utilised
in Vietnam today are described as well as looking at the range Tourism has been encouraged since the 1990s, with Russians,
of environmental emissions control systems. Future prospects Chinese, Taiwanese, and Europeans accounting for much of
for coal demand and supply are examined based on power the visitor numbers. Vietnam’s visitor appeal lies in many
station building programmes along with expectations for coal areas not least the Red River Delta and Ha Long Bay, which
production and coal importation. are also close to the current and (possibly) future major coal
mining operations of Vietnam. Tourism is also encouraged by
Vietnam’s coal industry is concentrated in the most local coal operations, and the state-run coal company
north-eastern province of Quang Ninh, on the border with Vinacomin operates a tourism subsidiary as part of its
China. The industry currently produces around 40–45 Mt/y of business.
mainly anthracite quality coal. With such close proximity to
the coast, half of the coal produced is exported to customers Over half the country consists of the heavily forested
across the Far East, notably power stations in southern China mountain range Chaine Annamitique. The Vietnam War led to
and steel mills in Japan. Coal is shipped through a few ports half of the country’s forest being seriously damaged either
located in Quang Ninh. from direct hit or from fall-out, much of it due to the defoliant
Agent Orange. Some 5% of the forest was destroyed. Logging
Half the coal produced is used within the domestic economy, and coffee crops led to further deforestation and soil erosion;
predominantly in industry (60% of domestic demand), but the since 1997, timber exports were banned to preserve forests.
power market will overtake and exceed industrial
consumption in coming years as a drive towards developing
coal-fired power within the country is under way.
The country’s reserves are currently estimated at 6000 Mt, of

which 2000–3000 Mt is thought to be recoverable. The
uncertainty in the amount of reserves is being addressed by a
joint Vietnam-Japanese survey which could verify the
estimates of further reserves in excess of 210 Gt. Before any
conclusive results are published, the uncertainty of reserves
means that the life of the reserves could be anywhere between
14 and 45 years.
1.2 Geographical profile

The Socialist Republic of Vietnam (or Viet Nam) lies on the

2 A brief political history
Vietnam’s long history has been coloured by war, much of it and economic co-operation with neighbouring countries. This
from foreign involvement. There has been a history of is evident in the number of hydropower generation and
Chinese control and invasions from other Asian rulers during transmission link schemes that Vietnamese corporations are
the Dynastic era of the 1st to 10th centuries. Western investing into in countries such as Laos, as well as extensive
dominance came during the colonial era by French military coal trading with China.
conquests in the 19th century, when the country became part
of French Indochina. Plantations and agricultural Internally, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam remains a single
commodities became major exports, but it was not until 1941 party state, with only the Communist Party of Vietnam
during the Second World War that the nationalist movement permitted to hold power. Although elections are held, only
of Viet Minh under Ho Chi Minh emerged to oppose both Communist Party approved organisations such as the
Japanese occupation and seek independence from France. Vietnamese Fatherland Front, the worker and trade unionist
party, are permitted to participate. While the Communist Party
The Soviet-backed Viet Minh fought French expeditionary of Vietnam remains central to government, it is apparent that
forces (supported by the US and Vietnamese loyalists) in the the ideology of orthodox Communism has taken a lesser role
First Indochina War between 1946 and 1954, when French in governing the country, and instead made way for policies
Indochina was dissolved. that promote economic prosperity and growth. Vietnam is
active in a number of international organisations not least the
In 1954 at the Geneva Conference, Vietnam was in effect split United Nations, ASEAN, and the World Trade Organisation.
between forces sympathetic to France in the south and the
communist nationalists in the north, and in between was the
Vietnamese Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) just south of the 17th
parallel. The DMZ ran east-west splitting the country and
spanned more than 100 km, and was little more than 2 km
wide. The Democratic Republic of Vietnam (north) and the
State of Vietnam (south) were formed, and political upheaval
was already ensuing due to a newly self imposed president
Ngo Dinh Diem in the south who then proclaimed himself
president of the communist controlled Republic in the north.
The National Liberation Front began a guerrilla campaign in

the late 1950s, supported by the government of the north. In
the 1960s, Buddhist discontent arose due to Diem’s
‘discriminatory’ policies and eventually as relationships with
the USA broke down, Diem was killed in a coup. Northern
communists gained ground as the south underwent infighting
from one military regime to another.
The communist insurgency during this period of disquiet

prompted the infamous Vietnam War as US forces became
involved in combat operations, with troop numbers peaking to
500,000. The Paris Peace Accords in 1973 led to the troop
withdrawal. In 1975, the North sent troops resulting in the
‘Fall of Saigon’. The South later officially united with the
North to become the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on 2 July
1976.
After reunification, communist central control took a firm

grip of the country, and mass migration led to millions
suffering from an international humanitarian crisis. Vietnam’s
relationship with China was tested as Vietnam invaded
Cambodia, thus starting the Cambodian-Vietnamese War in
1978 in an aim to remove the Khmer Rouge from power.
Even the Chinese launched a brief incursion into northern
Vietnam (Sino-Vietnamese War) in 1979. Vietnam then relied
more on Soviet economic and military aid.
Today, the picture is very different. Vietnam is a relatively

stable economy with increasing, if not high levels of political

3 An economy in rapid transition
Vietnam is attempting to move towards a market economy 2006, the US corporate giant Intel announced plans to build a
without political liberalisation. Traditional communist $300 million test and assembly plant north of Ho Chi Minh
systems remain firmly in place, with a politburo elected by City. Japanese manufacturers such as Panasonic and Yamaha
the party central committee. have set up in business parks outside Hanoi while further
north, Canon built the then largest inkjet printer factory in the
Historically, Vietnam has been an agricultural-based world.
civilisation based on wet rice cultivation. The Vietnam War
destroyed much of the economy of Vietnam. After the war, the Vietnam’s stock exchange was launched in Ho Chi Minh City
Government operated a planned economy, including the in 2000, and despite the political leanings of the ruling party,
collectivisation of farms, factories, and economic capital. The the government remain focused on the task of building a
economy suffered from inefficiency, corruption, and woefully strong economy. This is evident in the track record of growth
poor productivity. Economic activity and trade were since 1990. GDP growth throughout the 1990s averaged
restricted, and further suffered from the trade embargo from 7.6%/y. Growth continues to exceed 7%/y making it the
the USA and most of Europe. probably Asia’s second-fastest growing economy behind
China. While growth is likely to exceed 8% in 2007, The IMF
In 1986, the Sixth Party Congress introduced economic reported a possible drop in economic growth in 2009 to
reforms with market economy elements under the programme 5–6%/y, but this is expected to settle to a steadier 7%/y after
of ‘Doi moi’ (Renovation), not too dissimilar to Russia’s 2010.
policy of Perestroika. Hyperinflation and famine almost
forced the government to reconsider the old Soviet-style The IMF also estimated that Vietnam had an annual GDP of
centrally-planned economy and move towards a more wealth $71 billion ($220 billion on a current PPP basis) in 2007.
generating system. Although far from being a capitalist state, With a population of 86 m, per capita GDP was
the economic model today in Vietnam is based on a so-called approximately 829 $/cap in current prices. Per capita GDP is
‘socialist market economy’, and seems to receive little slightly below that for India (940 $/cap), and considerably
political opposition within the country. Private ownership is below that for China (2480 $/cap). Personal wealth has
encouraged in industry, commerce, and agriculture. Farmers improved especially amongst the middle income bracket.
are able to lease their land back from state collectives, and Since 1980, Vietnam has reduced the percentage of its
choose appropriate crops based on profitability as well as population living on less than 1 $/d from 51% to just 8%, an
suitability while selling the output at market prices. achievement Chandler and Prasso (2006) state that is still
some way off for even China. The percentage of people living
International diplomatic relations in the past have been tested in poverty is around 19.5% according to the ADB. Monthly
to varying degrees even amongst its allies with communist wages for unskilled labour in Vietnam averages $56–65, while
roots such as China and Russia. Relations with the USA have monthly salaries in China’s coastal cities can reach $132
improved greatly encouraging a boom in inward foreign (Maltby, 2008).
investment. Bilateral trade with the USA has boomed. In
2008, Vietnam imported some $3 billion worth of goods and According to the CIA (2008), the unemployment rate in
services from the USA. In that same year, the USA in turn Vietnam is 4.3% (2007 estimate). Agriculture still employs
bought $13 billion worth of Vietnamese goods and services 56% of the workforce, while industry employs 19% and the
(Omdahl and others, 2009). rest by the service sector. The economy is gradually
transforming, with the share of agriculture, fishery and
While the Communist Party was adapting to a new approach forestry falling from 42% of GDP in 1989 to 20.4% in 2006,
to governing a country, bureaucracy remained a problem as production in industry and services has risen (ADB, 2008b;
during the early years of economic transition. Following the CIA, 2008). Despite a clear shift away from agriculture as a
Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s, party leaders proportion of total GDP, Vietnam remains a major producer
promoted more foreign trade and greater competition. By and exporter of rice, cashew nuts, coffee, tea, rubber, and fish.
simplifying the rules for registering companies and the launch
of the stock market, private business started appearing in Price inflation is a problem in Vietnam. In an attempt to limit
massive numbers and foreign firms returned to the open the upward pressure on inflation from rising world prices, the
industrial and manufacturing plants. While bureaucracy Government froze domestic fuel prices in late March 2008,
remains in any government around the world, Vietnam was imposed a temporary ban on new contracts for rice exports in
clearly taking steps to shake off the image of the past of being April, and raised export taxes on crude oil and coal in May
tightly controlled by central government. and June of 2008 (ADB, 2008b). However, later in 2008 many
of the decisions to freeze prices were reversed. Fuel prices
Manufacturing, information technology and high-tech were permitted to rise to levels similar to that of neighbouring
industries form a large and fast-growing part of the national countries, partly to reduce the burden of subsidies but also in
economy. Chandler and Prasso (2006) reported on the response to the increased smuggling that resulted from the
booming recovery that Vietnam is making, and much of this artificial fuel price differential between Vietnam and its
beyond the awareness of the average consumer in the west. In neighbours.

An economy in rapid transition
Another major inflation risk is a devaluation of the

Vietnamese dong currency, which could make imports more
expensive and the trade deficit increase. Currency is also
traded on the black market, and suffered from a sharp
devaluation in the middle of 2008 (compared with the official
rate) thus fuelling inflation of imported goods. The exchange
rate has since settled to a rate closer to the official rate set by
the State Bank of Vietnam. Provided the trade balance can
remain in check, and inflation can be kept under control, the
economic prospects for Vietnam look optimistic.

4 Institutions and energy policy
The Ministry of Industry (MOI) oversees activities related to bodies carry out a variety of tasks involving R&D and
the energy sector and other industries in accordance with the deployment including:
decree on 189/2007/ND-CP Issues by the prime minister on ● Institute of Coal (Vinacomin);
27 Dec 2007. The MOI is responsible for the state ● Hanoi Technical University (HTU), Ministry of
management of all energy industries, namely electricity, new Education & Training (MET);
and renewable energy, coal, and the oil and gas industries. ● Institute of Oil & Gas (I of O&G), Vietnam Petrol &
The MOI presides over the formulation of law, policies, Gas Corporation (PETROVN);
development strategies, master plans and annual plans with ● Energy Department (ED), National Centre of
respect to these sectors, and submits them to the prime Natural Science &Technology (NCNST);
minister for issuance or approval. ● Development Strategy Institute (DSI), Ministry of
Planning & Investment (MPI).
The Ministry that oversees power and coal plans is the
Ministry of Industry (MOI). The Ministry not only determines The Vietnamese government clearly recognises a number of
first-line policy, it also has the supervisory responsibilities for deficiencies in the market that prevent effective energy
the energy sector, such as the state-owned companies management across the entire economy. These include a
Vinacomin and Electricité de Vietnam (EVN). The Ministry general problem of poor end-user efficiency; low productivity
of Industry (MOI) is responsible for master plans for in the energy industry; poor environmental protection;
electricity, coal, oil, and natural gas exploitation and supply; excessive bureaucracy in all decision making; inaccurate
the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Environment energy projection and analysis making planning problematic.
(MOSTE) is responsible for overseeing national R&D
programmes on energy and electricity planning. These statements at least suggest that the government and the
Ministries intend to move the Vietnamese energy economy
MOI is responsible for supervising implementation of forward, part of which will be met by adapting the energy
government policy, and recommending and drafting major economy into a market-led model for electricity generation
policy reforms for government adoption. MOI is responsible and primary energy production, notably coal, although the
for review and submission for Prime Minister approval of time frame for this is likely to be long term.
master investment plans for the sector and all major
investment projects. Although these often require review and
approval from other agencies as well, including the Ministry 4.1 The National Energy
of Planning and Investment (MPI) and the Prime Minister’s
office, MOI is the government window for the energy
Development Strategy
companies. MOI reviews and recommends retail price The National Energy Development Strategy was approved by
adjustments for approval by the Prime Minister. Other major the Prime Minister on 27 December 2008 (Decision No.
government institutions that are involved in energy issues are 1855/ QD-TTg) and set up the targets for energy development
listed below: for the period up to 2020, with a less committed outlook to
● The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) is 2050. The main targets are as follows:
responsible for the country’s economic development ● ensuring sufficient supply of energy to meet the demands
plans. The MPI’s involvement in the energy sector of socio-economic development, in which primary
includes reviewing and the provision of energy is expected to reach about 68–69 Mtce in 2010,
recommendations to the Prime Minister for all projects 143–157 Mtce in 2020 and about 443–457 Mtce in 2050;
using public funds or other resources. ● developing power plants and power networks, ensuring a
● The Ministry of Finance (MoF) arranges Government sufficient supply of electricity for socio-economic
guarantees for export credits, and provides, through its development, and ensuring the reliability of electricity
Development Assistance Fund (DAF), public sector loans supply is 99.7% in 2010;
to qualified users. ● developing refineries, step by step, to meet demand of
● The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment petroleum products in the country, and increasing
(MONRE) is responsible for environmental regulation. capacity of refineries to about 25–30 Mt of crude oil in
● The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) is responsible for 2020;
allocation of foreign exchange, and, as such, is the ● ensuring national strategic oil stockpiling at a 45 days
counterpart for international donor lending, and a key level in 2010, 60 days in 2020 and 90 days in 2025;
agency for implementing guarantees for foreign ● achieving a share of renewable energy of 3% in the total
exchange convertibility. commercial primary energy supply in 2010, 5% in 2025
● Provincial Peoples’ Committees (PPCs) are responsible and 11% in 2050;
for overseeing local government, including all ● completing the rural energy program for rural and
government functions delegated by the central mountainous areas. Increasing share of rural households
government. At a provincial level, localised five-year using commercial energy to 50% in 2010 and 80% in
plans can be drawn up, but must still be approved by the 2020. By 2010, 95% of rural households will have access
PPC prior to submission to the MOI. Other energy to electricity;

Institutions and energy policy
● changing the electricity, coal, oil-gas sectors to operate period 2010 to 2020. The plan included a number of
in competitive market mechanisms with State regulation. commitments that aimed to modify and improve coal industry
Establishing competitive electricity retailing market in practice and productivity. This particular decision paper is
the period after 2022; establishing a coal and petroleum important as it lists all the main coal mines in Vietnam along
product business market by 2015; with the corresponding production capacities. A subsequent
● actively preparing necessary and harmonious conditions revision to the decision was issued in 2008 under
for putting the first unit of nuclear power plant into No 89/2008/QD-TTg of July 7 2008. The basic platform for
operation in 2020, then growing nuclear power in the development is essentially the same but extends the plans to
national energy structure. By 2050, nuclear electricity 2015, and has a greater degree of emphasis on shifting the
will account for about 15–20% of total commercial coal market to a more competitive regime than in the past.
energy consumption of the whole country. Vietnam is
rapidly transforming into a net-energy importer. Clearly Many of the points of both decision papers outline the
energy security is becoming a growing concern. National direction in which the coal industry will be developed,
energy policy recognises that more effort is needed in especially in the Quang Ninh province. The second plan is
exploring and understanding reserves and resources of more sophisticated in its approach to coal transportation and
indigenous energy from fossil fuels, hydropower, and coal processing, as well as financing projects more through
other renewables. Greater efforts in exploration and private equity thus relieving the burden of finance from the
surveying are being undertaken to increase the proved state budget.
reserves and potential of energy resources of which coal
plays a major part. The core plan consists of four Articles:
● Article 1: Development plans for the Vietnamese coal
While there is a commitment to prioritise a number of issues, industry;
the chief priorities seem to lie in the reliable provision of ● Article 2: Allocation of responsibility to various industry
electricity and renewable power. The provision of electricity parties;
spans the security of supply of electricity and the delivery of ● Article 3: The Decision to take effect 15 days after
power in the rapidly expanding end-user market. There is signing;
greater emphasis on renewables includes, solar, wind, and ● Article 4: Implementation of the Decision by all relevant
biomass. Without doubt, hydropower takes precedence over stakeholders;
any other form of renewable power.
Under Article 1 of the ‘decision’ the main points are
summarised as follows:
4.2 Overview of Vietnam’s coal ● economic and efficient exploration, exploitation, and
efficiency;
industry policy ● manage domestic demand and exports;
Coal is seen as an extremely important aspect of energy policy, ● recognise socio-economic developments, tourism,
with a substantial domestic mining industry that currently security of energy supply, environmental and ecological
exports a bulk of its output. The coal export business is protection;
encouraged for now in order to earn foreign currency revenues ● improve and invest in existing operations;
to help finance development and advancements elsewhere in ● boost exploration in deeper fields to raise reserves levels;
the economy. However, on a broad basis, the coal industry is a ● improve production techniques and technologies in
highly strategic industry, which will be geared towards exports existing projects;
or towards the domestic market whenever it is felt necessary to ● investment capital at VND 14.1 trillion ( $0.8 billion) to
do so. It is the government’s intention that EVN builds a great improve and expand existing projects, and develop new
deal more coal-fired power to alleviated power shortages. New ones.
coal-fired power projects are being urged by the government in
order to bring reliable supply of electricity to the main demand Article 2 describes the various stakeholders with some of the
centres in the north and south. main responsibilities delegated to the Ministry of Industry,
which will oversee and co-ordinate Vinacomin’s plans with all
While the state coal and mining company Vinacomin will other organisations as well oversee mine safety and labour
endeavour to expand exploration, surveys and production, policies. Vinacomin carries out the coal production activities,
there is a possibility that coal that was once destined for the and organises the implementation of the action plans,
export market will be contained within the country for use by responsible for human resource training, R&D, and the
Vietnam’s power stations. While this seems like a threat to the advancement of productivity and safety in its operations.
anthracite export market, the condition for this to happen will
depend on whether the future coal generating capacity will be Articles 3 and 4 contain administration issues regarding the
capable of burning anthracite quality coals. This issue is implementation of the previous two articles.
discussed later in this report.
Vietmindo is the only other coal company, and operates in the
In January 2003, the government issued a decision (No Vangdanh-Uong Bi area of Quang Ninh and is a joint venture
20/2003/QD-TTg of 29 January 2003) by the Prime Minister between an Indonesian partner and the Uong Bi Coal
regarding the development of the coal industry in the period Company (Vinacomin’s subsidiary) and has been operating
2003-10 with targets for production, and aspirations for the since 1997 although its first sales started in 1998. Vietmindo’s

Institutions and energy policy
annual production is just 0.6–0.7 Mt/y, with ROM production

averaging 1 Mt/y between 2000 and 2004. The company’s
marketable coal reserves of 36.7 Mt from a total area of
1300 ha can sustain mining beyond the end of its concession
period, which lasts for 30 years. In addition, this licence could
be renewed for another period in the event that the company
still needs more time to achieve longer-term production goals.
4.3 Overview of the Vietnam

electricity market policy
With regards to wider strategies to develop the electricity
market the Government periodically issues five-year plans
through the Ministry of Industry. Plans relate to power system
planning, R&D programmes, development of technologies as
well as development of the existing infrastructure, and
electricity generating capacity. What seems to be lacking is an
effective initiative to improve efficiency in the end-user
market and the seemingly rampant growth in demand that is
exacerbating the problems of power shortage nationwide. It is
not being ignored however, as a programme to ensure a
greater adoption of energy efficiency measures and awareness
is being pushed forward.
As of 1 July 2005, the latest Electricity Law came into effect.

Ambitious targets for power generation were put forward,
generating 53 TWh by the end of 2005, and 88–93 TWh by
2010, then 201–250 TWh by 2020. These targets were laid
down in the Strategy for Electricity Development set out in
Decision 176 of the Prime Minister in October 2004. Part of
the measures included creating a competitive electricity
market, and diversifying the sources of electricity.
The overarching issues cover relatively advanced concepts for

market structure, considering the economy is centrally
planned. The principles of market forces will prevail in the
power market over time, with the aim that increased
efficiencies and the realisation of production costs (without
subsidy) sets electricity tariffs.
Developments in generation will start with competition in the

generating market (under a single buyer system), then
progress to the wholesale trading market, and then finally
progress to the retail (end-user) market. The Prime Ministerial
Decision 26/2006/QD-TTg was approved in January 2006;
with the establishment of this legislation the power market
will be developed through three steps:
● Level 1 (2005-14): a competitive generation power
market will replace the current monopoly and subsidised
power situation;
● Level 2 (2015-22): the establishment of a competitive
wholesale power market;
● Level 3 (after 2022): the realisation of a competitive
electricity retail market.
However, while the principles are in place the likelihood of

achieving full competition is small. According to a report by
FDB (2005), it may take 30 years for reformation of the
markets to take place fully. However, a change in the political
regime from a Communist state to a full democracy could
potentially bring about a swift change much sooner.

5 Primary energy supply
In 2006, the total supply of primary energy to the economy residues (rice husk, rice straw, coffee husk, and bagasse).
rose to more than 74 Mtce. The growth in total primary Biomass fuel sources include forest wood, rubber wood, and
energy supply since the early 1970s has averaged a modest residues from logging, saw mill, sugar cane, rice and coconut
2.8%/y, mainly attributed to the rise in demand for oil shells. By 2006, biomass and waste still accounted for a
products like petroleum since the 1980s, while the 1990s saw massive 46% of the primary energy demand in Vietnam.
a stronger emergence of hydroelectricity and natural gas. Coal Petroleum products accounted for 22%, coal 17%, and natural
consumption rose steadily, but until recently had not formed a gas 10%. A study by the Business Council for Sustainable
particularly dynamic trend over the long term. In more recent Energy (BSCE, 2005) suggested that biomass use in the
years, this has changed and coal demand has increased at a residential sector in 2000 was mainly for cooking stoves
significant pace. Coal, oil, and natural gas have absorbed a (22 Mtce), while kilns and electricity co-generators used a
great deal more of the share of primary energy over time. further 4.3 Mtce, a large proportion of this may have been in
Biomass and waste remain the largest providers of energy in the form of charcoal.
Vietnam today, albeit at a smaller share of total primary
energy supply than in the past. In total, biomass consumption amounted to 20 Mtce in 2000.
IEA data however has consumption of biomass, which was
almost entirely burned in the residential sector at 31 Mtce, a
5.1 Biomass – still the dominant figure that is considerably higher than the 20 Mtce published
by BSCE. While it is not clear which of the figures is correct,
fuel the pattern of estimating wood use is far from straightforward.
While this report focuses primarily on coal, it is worth Wood fuel is generally used for cooking, while water and
looking at the role that biomass such as wood fuel has in the space heating are also important applications. In some cases,
Vietnamese economy, and understand its possible continuing wood fuel provides energy for cooking, heating and lighting
importance. Despite the rise in conventional fuel at the same time. In some rural areas, wood fuel might be
consumption, Figure 1 shows clearly how the demand for collected by the end-user directly from the surrounding land,
energy in Vietnam remains dominated by demand for so consumption patterns are not readily recorded as a cash
combustible renewables (biomass) and waste. This group of crop. Therefore, wood fuel consumption is no longer limited
fuels includes solid, liquid, and gaseous biomass or waste by income, but rather the availability of wood.
products such as wood fuel or industrial waste streams. For
simplicity, this report will refer to these as biomass and/or Fuel switching away from wood fuel to conventional
waste. alternatives is common especially where incomes rise more
rapidly in more urban areas, but despite strong economic
In Vietnam, biomass consists of wood fuel and agricultural growth, one would expect a fall in biomass consumption as
traditional rural lifestyles are modernised. While the
efficiency of heat and availability of wood fuel is of less
80 concern, switching to more efficient stoves that are heated
using cleaner conventional fuels can have major positive
Total primary energy supply, Mtce
70
impacts on health and is often promoted through government
60 schemes. Interestingly, Vietnamese biomass consumption has
not fallen. Biomass usage appears to have actually increased
50 since 2000, from around 31 Mtce to 34 Mtce, indicating a
continued preference for biomass.
40
30
Figures 2 and 3 show the domination of the residential sector
in the energy market and the importance of biomass. An
20 interesting observation is the apparent lack of electrification
amongst Vietnamese households accounting for a much
10 smaller percentage of overall residential energy demand,
possibly a reflection of the more agricultural past. The
0
transports sector unsurprisingly makes the most use of
1971 1980 1990 2000 2006
petroleum products, while industry is a major user of coal,
biomass and waste petroleum products consuming some 7 Mtce out of a total 13.7 Mtce for that
sector; the rest is electricity and petroleum products. Between
hydroelectric crude, NGL and feedstocks 2000 and 2006, overall energy and coal demand in the
natural gas coal and coal products
industry sector rose at a rate of 17–18%/y, although the
impact on air emissions and CO2 rose significantly also.
Figure 1 Total primary energy supply 1971 to Aside from the power generation sector, the major end-users
2006, Mtce (IEA, 2009) of coal include the cement, paper, and fertiliser industries.

Primary energy supply
coal 17%
production at 12%/y, but does not fully explain the growth in
biomass and industrial coal demand >17%/y. Between 2001-05, the
waste 46% Vietnamese Paper Industry (VPC) increased output by
crude 1%
13.3%/t reaching a level of production of 1.3 Mt. In 2005, the
growth reached 13% and turnover increased by an even bigger
31% (VND 3.4 trillion, or $212 million), but not likely to
form a significant rise in the demand for coal. The paper
industry intends to increase paper production to 1.4 Mt, and
0.6 Mt of pulp. The intention is to reduce paper imports and
eventually cater for 70% of the domestic consumer market by
2010 .
petroleum
products 22%
The fertiliser industry is also a major consumer of coal, but
accurate energy consumption figures are not readily available.
natural gas 10% Needless to say, some parts of the industry are gearing up for
hydroelectric 4% a major increase in coming years. There are a number of types
of fertiliser for different crops and uses, but for urea fertiliser
Figure 2 Total primary energy supply (74 Mtce) in production capacity is expected to almost double to
2006 (IEA, 2009) 1.7–1.8 Mt by 2011 from the current 0.9 Mt. Total fertiliser
production in the country was estimated to be around
8–9 Mt/y. All these industries expanded production and
45 output, but at a rate considerably below that of the 17–18%/y
in coal demand recorded for industry. This could be due to
40 fuel substitution away from oil and gas in favour of coal.
35
Fuel consumption, Mtce
30
25
20
15
10
0
industry transport residential commercial agriculture
and public / forestry
services
electricity petroleum products
biomass and waste coal
Figure 3 Fuel use by end-user in 2006, Mtce

(IEA, 2009)
However, finding disaggregated data on coal usage in these

industries is not straightforward. It is possible to gain an
understanding of potential growth by looking at trends in the
production of cement, which in turn may be influenced by
other indicators such as the rate of construction of
infrastructure and buildings in the country. According to the
Vietnam Cement Association, domestic cement production
could increase from 25 Mt in 2004 to 50 Mt by 2010 while
tentative estimates suggest that production already reached
32 Mt in 2006-07 (VNCA, 2008). This would suggest that in
the six years between 2004 and 2010, cement production
increased by an average 12%/y, considerably faster than
economic growth and overall coal demand in the industry.
The paper industry also grew at a similar rate to cement

6 Energy resources of Vietnam
Pinpointing accurate figures for reserves or resources of fossil consumption. Oil products sold to Vietnamese users were
fuels is rarely straightforward for Vietnam, and frequently therefore subject to exchange rate risks twice, once for crude
comes under scrutiny by a number of studies. Often the oil going out of the country, and second for oil products
resource figures for some countries are stated incorrectly as coming back in. For reasons of cost and security of supply,
reserves or even misinterpreted as economically recoverable. Vietnam was keen to move away from this dependence on
international markets.
Minchener (2009) and Kavalov and Peteves (2007) are two
examples of studies that have attempted to examine the issue In recent years, Vietnam has been developing its first oil
of reserves reporting in an objective way. Figure 4 illustrates refinery. The $2.5 billion project at Dung Quat will output
how confidence in reserve/resource estimation diminishes 0.14 million barrels per day (Mbbl/d) of products.
depending on geological certainty and economic feasibility. Construction began in November 2005 after several years of
delay in securing investment. The main problem was location,
The most meaningful section of this graph is the proven whereby Dung Quat is located 600 miles from the Bach Ho
reserves that are considered economically accessible. oilfield, and some distance from the population centres of
Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Transportation by pipeline
The following section attempts to describe the amount of would therefore be a cost consideration, nevertheless,
economically recoverable reserves of energy that exists in operation was expected to start in 2009. A second refinery is
Vietnam, and the remaining life of the existing reserves. This also expected in the north of the country, which could be
does not preclude further reserves being made readily located closer to end-user markets and could produce
available as a result of enhanced recovery techniques and 150,000 barrels per day (bbl/d). Plant construction is expected
further exploration, but is the best assessment with the current to start in 2010.
data that are available.
Vietnam is a relative newcomer to oil production, but
production has steadily fallen in recent years, with production
in 2004 at 21 Mt/y (0.4 Mbbl/d) to 18 Mt/y (0.34 Mbbl/d in
2007 (BP, 2008).
resources
assumed
Decreasing geological certainty
deposits Today, production occurs at nine offshore oilfields, the largest

of which is the Bach Ho (White Tiger) field operated by
indicative
reserves Vietsovpetro, the joint venture between the national oil
deposits company Petrovietnam and the Russian company
Zarubezhneft. This joint venture forms the largest oil
proven
company in Vietnam.
measured reserves
deposits The decline in production has been largely due to a fall in
production at Bach Ho, which accounts for around half of the
country’s crude production. Several new projects are expected
economically technically not to come online such as the Su Tu Vang (Golden Lion) field,
accessible accessible accessible which could ramp up to 0.1 Mbbl/d before the end of 2008,
equivalent to a third of the production level in 2007. Other
Decreasing techno-economic feasibility projects such as Phuong Dong and the Ca Ngu Vang field,
with production expected to be around 20,000 bbl/d, are also
Figure 4 Depiction of resources and reserves due to come online in 2008.
(Kavalov and Peteves 2007)
The oil market is dominated by the Vietnam Oil and Gas
Corporation (Petrovietnam) which is fully state-owned.
Petrovietnam is controlled by the Ministry of Industry, but the
6.1 Oil resources oil company is in practice directed by the Politburo and
several other central government agencies. Petrovietnam’s
Oil production started commercially in 1986. During the first interests also lie in power generation and, as this report shows
half of the 1980s, oil was first discovered offshore in three later, is a large investor in the nation’s future power
fields (Bach Ho, Rong and Dai Hung). Further discoveries generating capacity.
were made to help avert a reserves depletion in coming years.
The production of crude oil (averaging 34º API) began in Given the relative openness of the Vietnamese economy,
1986 and rose steadily until 2004, but then fell by about 8% in Petrovietnam has formed a number of partnerships with
2005 and has barely recovered. Historically, all the crude oil international oil companies including BP (UK),
output was exported for refining in other countries, and then ConocoPhillips (USA), Korea National Oil Corp, Petronas
refined oil products were imported back again for domestic (Malaysia), Nippon Oil (Japan), and Talisman (USA).

Energy resources of Vietnam
The involvement of foreign companies should improve oil reserves (Hoang Loung, 2006), but is more likely to include
reserve reporting and methods of estimation. However, the reserves that are not yet economical to extract, or indeed
information on current oil reserves is not entirely proven from detailed exploration.
conclusive. The World Energy Council’s latest survey of
Energy Resources (2007) uses 2006 data from the BP In 2007, Vietnam produced 9 Mtce of natural gas (IEA, 2009),
Statistical Review. According to sources quoting the Oil & which constitutes just 10% of the country’s primary energy
Gas Journal, Vietnam held 600 Mbbls of proven oil reserves production. Assuming the most conservative reserve of
as of January 2007 (EIA, 2008). In the same report, Vietnam 262 Mtce, the R/P ratio will be less than 30 years.
is said to have produced roughly 0.4 Mbbl/d of oil, which
would imply a low R/P ratio of 4–5 years. If this is a
realistic assessment then Vietnam is heading for reserves 6.3 Hydroelectricity
depletion very quickly and will become an importer of crude
oil before 2012. Being a largely mountainous country, Vietnam has abundant
hydro resources, particularly in its central and northern
However, according to the BP Statistical Review (BP, 2008) regions. Vietnam’s geography spans the South China Sea and
Vietnam has 3400 million barrels of crude oil in proven the Gulf of Tongking. The geography means there are sharp
recoverable reserves. Based in this figure, Vietnam has local contrasts in the climate. In the north, winters are cool,
27 years of oil production left. This higher reserves figure while the south is more tropical with more even temperatures
published by BP and the WEC is supported by the German all year round. Central provinces are affected by typhoons but,
Institute BGR, which puts the R/P ratio at around 20–25 years with regard to hydropower, the northern Red River is
based on year end 2006 production and reserves figures. regularly subject to drought while the Mekong in the south
suffers from heavy rainfall and flooding at the delta is
common.
6.2 Natural gas
Hydroelectric development has historically received high
The natural gas industry operates in combination with the oil priority in Vietnam. Generation from hydroelectricity plants
industry and is under the control of Petrovietnam. Much of grew 9.7%/y between 1990 and 2006. In 2006, hydro output
the natural gas is produced from associated fields, which are reached 23.6 TWh. The potential resource for
oilfields that also have reserves of natural gas existing in hydroelectricity, if exploited economically, could be as high
pockets that, due to being a lower density, sit above the as 75–80 TWh/y (WEC, 2007). The ‘technical’ capacity is
surrounding oil reserves but capped below an impermeable 123 TWh/y, but these figures must be treated with caution.
rock strata. These are also colloquially known as ‘wet’ Technical capacity assumes that every conceivable natural
gasfields. flow of water to sea level (or to the border of Vietnam) is
utilised provided current technology can exploit it. Clearly,
The Bach Ho oil field produces a significant amount of ‘wet’ the ecological ramifications of exploiting hydroelectricity to
natural gas, while two major ‘dry’ gasfields include the Lan these limits would be a major issue. The Son La province is in
Tay and the Lan Do fields. These fields contain more than the northwest of the country and the geographical relief is
56 billion cubic metres (bcm) of recoverable gas reserves, a mountainous and perfect for hydropower.
quarter of the country’s total. A further 26 bcm could be
contained in the Rong Doi (Twin Dragon) and Rong Doi Tay There are social and environmental impacts of building hydro
(Twin Dragon West) gas fields. plants in economies with large rural populations which
account for 75% of the total population. The Son La hydro
The Lan Tay and Lan Do fields are of particular interest as project (due online between 2012 and 2015) is one example
they incorporate the Nam Con Son Gas Project (NCSGP) of the environmental impact such a project can have and
which is an integrated gas-to-power project that takes gas where the resettlement of 70–90,000 people since 2001 was
offshore and transmits it via a 230 mile subsea pipeline and not straightforward. In future, hydroelectricity may have a
onshore to the Phu My power complex. This power complex lesser role in the power sector, although this does not render
is also a potential source for CO2 capture from the 4000 MWe hydropower obsolete in project development terms. There is
combined cycle gas turbine project which will lead to the still plenty of potential for business to invest in hydroelectric
capture and storage of CO2 for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) schemes.
at the Bacj Ho oil field.
All power generation is susceptible to periodic downtime in
Pinpointing the volumes of gas reserves is not operation, but none as fundamental as when renewable
straightforward given that the reserves range widely from energies are impacted by sudden and prolonged outages due
192 billion cubic metres (bcm) to 1200 bcm to weather related incidents. In 2005, electricity shortages
(263–1644 Mtce). This wide range is probably attributed to resulted from low reservoir levels. Year-to-year, this is a
a difference in definitions of what is reserve and what is common feature of economies such as Vietnam, Spain, and
resource. The EIA (2008) reported proven natural gas Norway with large supplies of renewable hydro energy. Some
reserves as at 190 bcm as of January 2007, or 262 Mtce. The of these eventualities can be prepared for using back-up
BP Statistical Review estimates that proven reserves of gas thermal capacity. Unlike wind and solar power,
are a little higher at 301 Mtce (approx 220 bcm). Other hydroelectricity is a form of power storage that makes hydro
estimates suggest that Vietnam has some 1643 Mtce of gas far more controllable than other renewable sources.

After 2004, the price of uranium oxide began to trend

6.4 Uranium upwards, but at a rate not seen in the previous period. The
price spiked massively, reaching 300 $/kgU in 2007.
Vietnam is not commonly associated with uranium resources, However, the upward spike stopped abruptly, and common
but exploration has been carried out since 1955. Since 1997, with almost all other commodity prices, effectively collapsed,
exploration centred around the Nong Son Basin in the Quang dropping to around 110 $/kgU in 2008.
Nam province of central Vietnam.
Uranium reserves figures change depending on the cost
It is worth outlining the method used for assessing uranium bands, but given the trend over the last few years it is not easy
reserves. Like any energy commodity, uranium reserves are to settle on an appropriate band. Taking the 2008 price of
dependent on the cost of uranium (U3O8). Resources are 130 $/kgU – which lies between the historical low and high
reported in the publication Uranium 2005: Resources, levels – it is possible to make comparisons with published
Production and Demand (Red Book), a joint report of the data. The WEC (2007) reported Vietnamese RAR reserves at
OECD Nuclear Energy Agency and the International Atomic <130 $/kgU to be 1337 tU. Inferred resources at this price
Energy Agency (NEA/IAEA, 2006). The resources reported were also estimated to be 7244 t. In both RAR and inferred
by 44 countries are classified by the level of confidence in the reserves, some 75% was expected to be economically
estimates, and by production cost-categories. The 2005 Red recoverable.
Book deviates somewhat from the resource categorisation
used in former Red Book editions. Identified Resources These data alone give little idea of the scale of the reserves
consist of two categories: since none is produced. However, according to the Australian
(a) Reasonably Assured Resources (RAR) – recoverable Uranium Association, about 200 t of uranium (or 160–170 tU)
within a specified cost range; is required to keep a large 1000 MWe nuclear power reactor
(b) Inferred Resources – in addition to proved reserves that generating for a year. At 2008 prices, Vietnam’s reserves do
are recoverable, but inferred based on direct geological not contain enough uranium to feed a large reactor for much
evidence and not proven. more than eight years. However, with further exploration and
greater certainty of deposits, there is potential to feed a large
For each category, recoverable uranium is grouped into three reactor for several decades.
subcategories based on production cost-ranges in dollars per
kg of uranium; these subcategories are equivalent to Approximately 15% of the inferred reserves were reported to
<40 $/kgU, <80 $/kgU and <130 $/kgU. Costs include the fall into the <$80 cost bracket, therefore improving the
direct costs of mining, transporting and processing uranium chance of this potential. Undiscovered in situ conventional
ore, the associated costs of environmental and waste resources recoverable at up to 130 $/kgU consisted of 7860 t
management, and the general costs associated with running in the prognosticated resource category (PR) for which the
the operation (as defined by the NEA). evidence of uranium is mainly indirect but is believed to exist
in well-defined geological trends or areas of mineralisation
Figure 5 shows the historical price of uranium since 1987. with known deposits. A further 230,000 t could be contained
There has been a long period of steady prices between 1987 in speculative resources, 40% of which could be at
and 2004, averaging within a narrow band of 22–33 $/kgU. <130 $/kgU, and the rest in a cost range that is not
320
300 CIS (unrestricted)
280
260
Ux uranium price
240
220
200
Uranium, US$/kg
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09
Figure 5 World price of uranium US$/kg (UxC, 2009)

determined. Hoang Luong (2006) reported that Vietnam had

some 218,167 Mt of uranium deposits, although the accuracy
remains unconfirmed. However, if even a fraction of this
could be confirmed as mineable then the potential to run a
large nuclear reactor in Vietnam could be closer to reality.
There is no large civil nuclear reactor operating for the

purposes of public power generation existing in the country
today. The country’s sole nuclear reactor in the Da Lat
Nuclear Institute in Central Highlands Lam Dong province
has a capacity of a mere 500 kW. It is used for training and
research purposes. The Da Lat reactor was built in 1963 by
the USA, and later upgraded by the former-USSR.
The Da Lat reactor is fuelled using low-enriched uranium

(LEU), part of which is converted from highly enriched
(HEU) uranium. The Vietnamese authorities signed a tri-party
agreement with Russia and the USA to remove stocks of
highly enriched uranium, and return unconverted weapons
grade material to the country of origin. The Vietnamese
Agency for Radiation and Nuclear Safety and Control
reported the return of HEU fuel rods to Russia as part of
anti-terrorism agreements with the USA and Russia.
6.5 Renewables and geothermal

At the present time, there is no geothermal power generation,
although geothermal resources do exist. A pre-feasibility
report for six plants (total capacity, 112.7 MWe) in central
Vietnam has been prepared but the project has been
postponed. The government-supported exploration and
evaluation of the country’s geothermal resource has shown
that there is a total of 269 prospects and a potential of
649 MWth. The south-central, north-western and
north-central regions are the areas of Vietnam with the
greatest potential. Direct utilisation is limited to the provision
of industrial process heat (iodide salt production, 1.4 MWth)
and bathing and swimming (29.7 MWth).
Wind, solar and other forms of power generation from

renewables are almost non-existent except for a small
30 MWe project that has been approved at Cau Dat, for which
the project developer is Cavico. This is in stark contrast to the
massive quantities of biomass that are consumed in the
various economic sectors.

7 Coal resources and reserves in Vietnam
A wide range of coals are available for potential exploitation. Onshore coal resources are spread across the country and
Every coal rank is found in Vietnam, from the large amounts shown in Figure 7 as a nationwide map showing the locations
of anthracite already mined, to bituminous, subbituminous, of the main coalfields (Hung, 2007) and combined with this
lignite coals, and peat. Figure 6 illustrates the current proven the indicators of coal rank that can be expected to be found in
reserves; as more resources are explored and surveyed, this various parts of the country (Vinacomin, 2009). The first
chart may well change. Vietnam currently has a greater wealth striking feature is the vast area of land that seems to contain
of proven anthracite reserves compared to any other coal rank. coal, although the map does not indicate the volume of coal
This notable emphasis on anthracite coal is a reflection of the found. Areas of land could contain thin or fragmented seams,
geographical concentration of coals and coal production in and so the actual reserves could be poor, despite apparently
just a few areas of the country. This section discuses the covering a wide area as Figure 7 suggests.
distribution of coals, while coal qualities are discussed in
greater detail in Section 7.4.
Na Duong
peat 5% 4 3
brown coal 2% 2 Thai Nguyen
5 7 8
Hongai
subbituminous 26% Hanoi 1
Campha
Da River or Song Da Quang Ninh
Red River Delta

6
Ca River and
Nghe Tinh
anthracite 67%
1 Quang Ninh
Figure 6 Proven coal reserves by coal type 2 Thai Nguyen
3 Backan Hue
(Total = 6.1 Gt) (Thanh Son, 2006)
4 North Path
5 Da River Nong Son - deposit
6 Ca River
7.1 Where the coal is found 7 Red River
8 Na Duong
Before discussing the distribution of coal across the country, it
port of shipment
is worth mentioning there is currently a re-evaluation of
Vietnam’s coal reserves and resources through increased survey coalfield
work, which is being done in conjunction with Vinacomin and
several Japanese organisations such as JCOAL, NEDO, and 300 km
JBIC. These surveys are yet to be completed, some time after
2009 for the Quang Ninh basin and after 2011 for the Red Ba River - deposit
River basin. However this section draws on the current
knowledge and availability of data.
Ho Chi Minh City
Despite some optimism regarding coal reserves in Vietnam,
coal is not evenly distributed across the country. The major
deposits are currently concentrated in just two geological
basins, the Quang Ninh and the Red River basins, both
located in the far north of the country (see Figure 7).
Coalfields have also been identified in numerous sites in the
central and southern regions of the country. Coal reserves
have been identified offshore in basins along the continental
Mekong River Delta - peat deposit
shelf of Vietnam; although this report will not consider these
reserves, the potential for their exploitation using Figure 7 Map of Vietnam's coal reserves (Ritschel
underground coal gasification is discussed in detail by Couch and Schiffer, 2007; Bui and Drebenstedt,
(2009). 2004)

Coal resources and reserves in Vietnam
Quang Ninh is probably the most explored coalfield and is Quang Ninh occupies a total area of about 5900 km2, of
where current production is almost entirely concentrated. which 2800 km2 is forest land, and 510 km2 is agricultural.
Almost all discussion on recoverable, or mineable reserves Around 40% of the population is concentrated in and around
refers to those found in Quang Ninh. Coal has been exploited the city of Ha Long, which suggests that Quang Ninh is more
in Quang Ninh province for 100 years. It is one of the farthest urbanised than many other parts of Vietnam where the
northeast provinces bordering China. The location of major average urban population accounts for just 25% of the total.
coal reserves are shown in Figures 8 and 9. The Quang Ninh coalfields are located close to the coast and
Uong Thuong OC
1 Mt/y
Quang Ninh Province
Vang Danh UG Dong Vong UG
3 Mt/y 1 Mt/y
Khe Tam UG
Nam Mao UG 0.7 Mt/y
3 Mt/y
Nga Hai UG
1.5 Mt/y
Mao Khe UG
1.8 Mt/y
OC opencast
Campha UG underground (deep mining)
Trang Bach UG Hon Gai
1.2 Mt/y Mt/y production capacity estimated for 2006
Nui Beo OC
2.5 Mt/y coal mine
Giap Khau UG town

1 Mt/y
Figure 8 Coal deposits in Vietnam
Khe Cham UG/OC

8.8 Mt/y Mong Duong UG
1.5 Mt/y
Cao Son OC
7.5 Mt/y
Duong Huy
1.5 Mt/y
Khe Sim
0.4 Mt/y
Coc Sau UG/OC
3.4 Mt/y
Thong Nhat UG Deo Nai OC
Ha Tu UG 2 Mt/y 2.5 Mt/y
2 Mt/y
Campha
Cam Son
Ben Gio Beach
coal port - Hongai (10 km west)

OC opencast
2 km
UG underground (deep mining)
Mt/y production capacity estimated for 2006

coal mine
town
Figure Major coal mines around the Campha region

so are ideally located for exporting coal to the international

Table 1 Comparison of world anthracite
seaborne market, as well as for transit by ship to ports in the
reserves (Marston and Ewart, 2007)
south of Vietnam where there is a dearth of coal resources.
The coalfields are close to the major coal ports of Campha (or Estimated
Cam Pha), which is also the name of the province which is a Nominal
recoverable Remaining
production
major centre of coal production (see Figures 8 and 9). Country resources resource life
rate
Another major port is located several km west of Campha in (as of 2006)
the province of Ha Long around the major town of Hon Gai Mt Mt/y Years
(or Hongai).
China 6350 275 23
The greatest concentration of coal mining activity is clearly
Russia 6870 15 458
seen in Figures 8 and 9 showing the Quang Ninh province and
the coastal area of Campha. The Campha region probably has Ukraine 5860 20 293
half of the production capacity available in Vietnam today.
Vietnam 2230 40 56
There are a number of production facilities in the western
areas of Quang Ninh (see Figure 8) where operating mines North Korea 1425 22.5 63
serve local power stations by truck and rail as well as having
South Africa 710 1.5 473
access to rivers by barge. These are found mainly in the area
of Uong Bi close to the western border of Quang Ninh. South Korea 240 3 80
Figure 10 shows the percentage share of major coal regions Spain 195 3.9 51
where production exists, and presumably refers mainly to USA 50 3.5 14
anthracite reserves. As seen in the figure, at least 66% of the
reserves published by Thanh Son (2006) were found in three Poland 62.5 0.25 250
regions of Quang Ninh. Other regions accounted for 34%,
which are referred to as Interland, or otherwise known as the
Vietnamese Interior, which probably refers to the provinces According to a report published by the ADB (2007) some
west of Quang Ninh such as Bac Giang, Lang Son, Thai 3.4 Gt of mineable reserves existed, of which 2.8 Gt was
Nguyen to name just a few. anthracite, 0.5 Gt was subbituminous, and 0.04 Gt was ‘fat’
coal (metallurgical coal). Since the calorific value of
anthracite is typically high compared with lower rank coals,
reserves in energy terms are overwhelmingly dominated by
other regions 34%
Cam Pha 32% the anthracitic coals. But herein lies the problem of quoting
Quang Ninh total reserve figures in terms of tonnage.
Table 1 lists the major reserves of anthracite as of 2006

according to the international mining consultants Marston;
with reserves of 2.2 Gt, Vietnam has the fourth largest
anthracite reserve behind Russia, (6.9 Gt), China (6.4 Gt), and
Ukraine (5.9 Gt). It is important to note that this table refers
to only those countries which have worked reserves that are
Uong Bi 22% currently in production. This figure for anthracite reserves is
Quang Ninh
Hon Gai 12% slightly less than the figure given by ADB of 2.8 Gt.
Quang Ninh
Figure 10 Proven coal reserves by region (Thanh 7.3 Prospective reserves

Son, 2006)
Figure 6 illustrates the approximate estimates for proven coal
reserves by rank, inclusive of peat. This figure is based on
7.2 Anthracite reserves data published by Thanh Son (2006) which estimated total
proven reserves to be 6 Gt, substantially more than that
Establishing a clear picture of coal resources in Vietnam is quoted by other sources. However, in 2006 Vinacomin
extremely difficult given the current knowledge. Publicly announced it had discovered a significant coal seam in the
available data are fraught with uncertainty. Reserves have Song Hong (Red River) Delta in northern Vietnam estimated
been quoted at being anywhere between 0.6 Gt and 3.5 Gt to contain up to 100 Gt. The Red River Delta is spread across
(Ritschel and Schiffer, 2007; Vinacomin, 2009). Given that the provinces of Thanh Binh Nam Dinh, and Hung Yen, just
Vietnamese coal production was close to 45 Mt in 2007, this south of Quang Ninh (see Figure 7). However, quite how
would suggest that the country’s reserves of 0.6 Gt could be much coal the country has remains uncertain. Projected
depleted in around ten years at these production rates. reserves could be as high as 210 Gt, although only 1.6 Gt may
Vinacomin itself recognises the potential shortage of coal that be available at depths of less than 1000. This leaves a
may occur at around 2015 if new sources, both domestically phenomenal amount of reserves that may lie at extreme
and imported, are not explored. depths.

Vinacomin has started to carry out surveys of some mines, less than this. Interestingly, this reserve is considerably below
such as Binh Minh, Khoai Chau 1 and Khoai Chau 2 which the 210 Gt that is often quoted. The importance of the Red
are at a depth of 400 metres to 1200 metres. At these depths, River coal resource is reinforced by the creation of the Red
underground coal mining will be costly. In addition, the River Coal Company, a subsidiary of the state-owned
province of Thanh Binh is described as the ‘rice bowl’ of Vinacomin which is developing two operations, the Khoai
Vietnam where the impact on the rural environment and Chau and Thanh Cong. The developments have raised
agricultural livelihoods. The Chinese import-export company controversy over environmental issues of resettling people,
CMC, and the US group Bantry Bay Ventures-Asia LLC will but also the impact on the agricultural economy that is
develop two coal mines at Binh Minh (Thanh Cong and Khoai abundant in rice crops, a staple commodity for Vietnam.
Chau II), while the Japanese company Murabeni will explore
Khoai Chau I (VBF, 2008b).
7.4 Coal geology and quality
To explore the Red River Basin may require $200–500
million in just the first phase. A further $1 billion may be According to Thomas (2002), the Vietnamese hard coals are
required to develop the three mines. The Red River Basin in of Mesozoic age and were laid in the Triassic period
total covers an area of 3500 km2 (MTM, 2008). The dip of the (200–250 million years old), although some older texts also
seams suggests that around half the resources will be refer to some coals being laid down even earlier in the
accessible by opencast mining while the rest would be by Palaeozoic era (250–540 million years old).
underground methods. As mentioned earlier, coals at depths
of more than 1000 m may be extracted using While many hard coals across the world were laid down in the
non-conventional means and could provide potential for Palaeozoic era (see Figure 11), curiously, most of Vietnam’s
future (yet experimental) methods such as underground coal coals started to form in the Triassic period, which is also the
gasification (see Section 19.4). period of the event called the ‘Coal Gap’. The Triassic ‘Coal
Gap’ is aptly named as the only period when little or no coal
Interestingly the Red River reserves may not be dominated by was laid at all. The reason for the large absence of Triassic
anthracite in the way Quang Ninh is. Consequently, the coals is primarily due to two major periods of extinction, both
exploitation of Red River resources could lead to a change within the Triassic period, the first in the beginning and the
away from anthracite demand towards lower ranks coals, second towards the end.
although at this stage this remains speculative. Vinacomin
(2009) quoted a report by NEDO that surveyed the Red River The first extinction leading to the Coal Gap was the most
coal deposits in 1998-2003, and stated that there could be devastating episode of mass extinction in the history of earth,
30 Gt of coal, much of which is subbituminous (6000 kcal/kg eliminating almost all life on earth. This mass extinction also
AD, 40% VM, 0.6% S). This greatly boosts coal resource known as the ‘Great Dying’. Some say that up to 99% of the
figures, although the quantities of reserves would probably be living species of the world were gone in an extremely short
Paleozoic Mesozoic Cenozoic

Devonian Carboniferous Permian Triassic Jurassic Cretaceous Tertiary
Eastern USA Western USA
UK
Western Europe
Eastern Europe
CIS
China
Australia
India
South Africa
Eastern Canada Western Canada
South America
other Far East
350 300 250 200 150 100 50 0
Figure 11 Geological age distribution (Thomas, 2002)

period in geological time, including the plant life that would different rank. Anthracite appears on the far right of the chart
have formed the peat-forming material around this period. with high heating values, well in excess of 30 MJ/kg and
There is no surprise therefore that while coals in their various extremely low moisture contents. However, Whitehouse
forms have been forming throughout the entire history of the (2004) published a review of anthracite use in power
planet, almost none was formed in this period. generation around the world, and this paper included a
summary list of properties of low volatile coals from around
A second, and less severe, extinction episode occurred the world.
towards the latter part of the Triassic Period; neither of these
extinctions should be confused with that of the dinosaurs, Interestingly, the coals in Cam Pha, Hon Gai, Mao Khe, Trang
which occurred much later at the end of the Cretaceous Bach, and Vang Danh consist of fairly high ash content
period. Peat-forming plant recovery eventually occurred (31–39%), and modest (gross) calorific values (20–24 MJ/kg)
towards the late-Triassic period in what is now China, South when compared with hard coals found elsewhere around the
America, and which is probably when the Vietnamese world. Other information sources suggest that typical
anthracites began forming and was in the early period when Vietnamese coals have calorific values that exceed 29 MJ/kg
the great dinosaurs dominated earth. The coal in Quang Ninh (7000 kcal/kg), making Vietnamese hard coal readily
lies in a complex geological structure with many faults and exportable. Some anthracites have a calorific value as high as
folds. The mineral deposits comprise a number of coal seams 33–35 MJ/kg (8000–8300 kcal/kg) with a sulphur content of
of different thicknesses also interspersed with waste partings typically 0.5–0.6%, and 4–8% (dry mineral matter free or
of various thicknesses. As mentioned in previous sections of dmmf basis) volatile matter. Clearly, there is a wide range of
the report, Vietnam’s coal industry is concentrated in this coal qualities, in Vietnam, which is demonstrated by data
northern province where the anthracite reserves exist. published by the Hanoi University of Mining and Geology
that summarised the proximate qualities for Quang Ninh coals
Anthracite is a high rank coal, which has a high carbon as shown in Table 2.
content, very low volatile and moisture contents and generally
relatively low levels of impurities compared to other coals. Amongst the more commonly mined anthracites, the high
Figure 12 shows the representative qualities of coals of carbon content is key to the very high heating values. While
high heating values are advantageous, there are other quality
facets of anthracite that make these types of coal unsuitable to
burn in conventional power station boilers, and have been
anthracite described as some of the most difficult coals to burn
30 anywhere in the world (Hough, 1998). Anthracites generally
have a low volatile content of 10% (dmmf) or below.
Vietnamese anthracites found in Hon Gai and Uong Bi have
low volatile contents of 5–8% (dry basis). Most bituminous coals
volatile may have volatile contents of 10–45% (dmmf). Anthracite’s
low volatile content makes it a rather inert material during
LHV, MJ/kg as mined
20 combustion compared with higher volatile materials. This

bituminous
high volatile makes it more difficult to ignite and so anthracite burning
boilers have to be modified to accommodate the slower
burning fuel. Power plant design is discussed later in
Chapter 19 of the report.
10
According to Vietnamese classification, coal products are
sub-
bituminous graded according to the size of product, which does not seem
consistent with international convention. A possible reason is
lignite that traded coals are almost uniformly anthracite from the
same region, and so quality variability is less of an issue than
0 say comparing bituminous coals from different parts of the
Table 2 Run of mine coal qualities in Quang

100
Moisture, % as mined
Ninh (Bui and Drebenstedt, 2004)
Quality criteria Minimum Maximum

50
Inherent moisture, % 0.4 14.2
Volatile matter, % 2.8 24.5

0
Rank Sulphur (natural), % 0.01 2.7
Heat content, kJ/kg 25.8 39.3

Figure 12 LHV and moisture content of coals
(IEA CCC, 1983) Density, t/m3 1.37 1.5

world. Under the Vietnamese classifications, coals that are

less than 15 mm are categorised under ‘dust’ (or ‘fine’) coals.
For coals of greater than 15 mm, the products are named
‘coarse’ (or ‘lump’) coal. As a general observation, the finer
the coal, the lower the quality.
The ranges that are shown in Table 2 encompass all the

quality parameters that are discussed earlier in this section,
and demonstrate the wide variety of coal qualities that exist in
the Vietnamese producing mines. However, it is reasonable to
assume that a bulk of the production is of a quality that is
exportable to the international market. The higher ash content
coals tend to be of low calorific value, some as low as
4600 kcal/kg. While these might indicate lignite brown coals,
according to Vinacomin, the moisture content of some of
these poorer quality coals is little more than 8%.
Vietnam is known to have subbituminous coal, found in the

Red River Basin, and even lower rank coals such as lignite
and peat. Much of these resources are not found in Quang
Ninh but rather around the Red River Basin. The
subbituminous coals have a respectable calorific value of
6000–6200 kcal/kg, are low in sulphur, and suitable for
thermal power generation and metallurgy. Given these
qualities, they are comparable to some Indonesian coals, and
so perhaps some of the better quality Red River coals could
be developed for both domestic use and export. The lowest
rank coal is peat, distributed throughout the whole country,
and is used for fertiliser and a residential cooking and heating
fuel for rural areas. While peat reserves are quite sizeable, the
use has probably not gone beyond local usage.

8 Coal resources and reserves in Vietnam
The coal industry of Vietnam dates back almost 170 years.
Until 1995, all the national industries including the coal
mining industry were underdeveloped in modern terms.
According to Thai Van Can (2007) coal mining technology
was described as backward and suffering from poor
productivity.
Before 1995, the coal industry comprised five companies,

four of which operated under the Ministry of Energy. The four
Ministry companies were the Hon Gai Coal Company,
Campha Coal Company, Uong Bi Coal Company, and the
Interior (or Interland) Coal Company. Other coal mining units
were also owned by the army. Under the Ministry, there was
the Coal Import-Export and Materials supply Company
(Coalimex) whose tasks were to import equipment and
materials for the coal industry and to export coal on behalf of
the entire industry.
In 1995 however, Government of Vietnam sought to

modernise the industry, and in doing so established a new
corporation, the Vietnam National Coal Corporation
(Vinacoal). Vinacoal became a consolidated entity
incorporating all the coal production operations and trading
businesses, exploration, infrastructure such as mine roads,
dedicated railways, and sea ports.
Vinacomin was later formed in 2005 from the merging of

Vinacoal and Vietnam Mineral Corp (or Vimico). Vinacomin
has become a large economic group of diversified businesses,
including its core business of coal production and export, and
the production of other minerals such as bauxite as well as all
the other activities which were undertaken by Vinacoal. In
2010, Vinacomin intends to commission an aluminium factory
that will have a capacity of some 1–1.5 Mt/y of production
(VDG, 2006) and could lead to future expansion given that
Vietnam has the world’s third largest bauxite (aluminium ore)
reserves.
Currently, coal production is central to Vinacomin’s

operations. The coal business comprises of 58 member units.
There are 21 coal companies, which probably account for
95% of the nation’s coal output. In addition to the coal
production operations, there are seven engineering, machinery
and mine equipment and materials companies, five transport
machinery and logistics companies, and three major power
companies. The remaining companies include management,
finance, tourism, education, and human resources.

9 Coal production trends for Vietnam
Precise production figures are difficult to ascertain, although are potentially large operations if they are successfully
based on exports of 30 Mt and domestic consumption of implemented in forthcoming years. According to Table 3,
14 Mt, production in 2006 could have reached 44 Mt there are two mines in Binh Minh province (most notably the
(Ritschel and Schiffer, 2007). This is probably a slight Khoai Chau operation). In future years, the Red River projects
over-estimate for that year, but nevertheless a logical could output 9 Mt/y, but these remain unfulfilled until foreign
assumption. Official figures suggest that Vinacomin produced investment can be secured and environmental matters can be
around 40 Mt/y in 2008, and accounted for 94% of the resolved to a satisfactory degree. As such, the Red River
country’s output. Scaling this figure up to a total national projects may face delays in commissioning or not realise their
figure suggests that the country’s total output was 42–43 Mt/y. full potential for some years.
Production could reach about 43.5 Mt of coal in 2009, of
which 24 Mt is for domestic demand and 20 Mt is for the Table 3 contains some discrepancies when comparing like for
export market. like mine data for both 2003 and 2006; the 2006 list appears
to have more gaps. The 2006 list is short of around 6 Mt/y of
Demand for coal in the power sector for 2008 was estimated mine capacity that appears in the 2003 list. It is possible that
to be 6.5 Mt, with a possible 2.5 Mt rise in 2009. Under the the operations that appear in the 2003 list are the names of
Vietnam Coal Industry Development Strategy, coal production smaller mines which, when grouped, form fewer yet larger
could reach 48–50 Mt in 2010, 60–65 Mt in 2015, and operations named in the 2006 list. For example, the Cao Son
70–75 Mt in 2020, and 80 Mt in 2025. and Dong Cao Son mines (in 2003) may be classified as just
‘Cao Son’ (in 2006). Similarly Mong Duong and Mong
The 2003 Decision paper listed the coal mines due for Doung (northeast) may have been combined to form the
upgrades and investment for the period 2003-10. Table 3 ‘Mong Duong’ operation.
lists the 52 mines identified in the Decision Paper that were
due for investment; 39 of the mines were to undergo Interestingly, Thanh Son (2006) names four additional
renovation and expansion, just three were to undergo operations that do not appear in the older 2003 list, they are
maintenance, and ten were new mines due to be opened by Trang Bach (1.2 Mt/y), Lo Tri (4 Mt/y), Nui Hong (0.3 Mt/y),
2010. The third column lists the known production and Hong Thia (1 Mt/y). These mines amount to 6.5 Mt/y.
capacities published officially at the time of the Decision This could more or less explain the 6 Mt/y gap. As a result,
Paper in 2003. The capacities of these mines amounted to the total headline figures for mine capacity show some
31 Mt/y. The newly commissioned mines were expected to consistency from different Vinacomin sources, despite some
add 9 Mt/y to the existing 31 Mt/y, a massive increase of inconsistency on a mine basis.
30%. It is worth stating that this production may refer to
ROM (run of mine) production, and not saleable product, so
some caution has to be taken when interpreting these data. 9.1 Utilisation of coal mine capacity
When balancing these figures with future demand
projections, some consideration will need to be made to Based on the headline figures for production capacity, it is
account for any such discrepancies. possible to determine the utilisation, or capacity factor, of
Vietnam’s coal mines. The results show there is a massive
However, given the renovated facilities would logically lead level of under utilisation in the coal mine capacity. In 2003,
to higher productivity levels, it is difficult to ascertain whether the production capacity for the country stood at 40 Mt/y,
the increase in capacities was due to increased capital while production was just 20 Mt/y (Dac and others, 2008);
expenditure to increase the number of mine faces, or simply therefore the utilisation rate was just 50%. In past years, coal
due to better performance at the existing faces. In 2006, production from the underground mines was operating at
Thanh Son (2006) presented updated figures for operations 30–35% capacity, although this could rise in coming years
owned and operated by Vinacomin, and went further to following several years of investment in the industry.
disaggregate the opencast and underground mines. The list is Mechanisation in many mines was antiquated based on old
not exhaustive, but covers the main mines that were operating Russian equipment but, more importantly, there is little
in this period. It is possible changes have occurred to the incentive to increase performance since the coal industry was,
statuses of mines since. and still is, operating in a non-competitive market.
Of those mines that have been identified, 48 Mt/y out of a Some surface mines have closed due to the depletion of
total of 65 Mt/y of capacity is located in the Quang Ninh reserves, and so Vietnam is seeking to increase production of
coalfields. Quang Ninh has at least 20 mines that exceed an its deeper anthracite reserves. Purchase of heavy mining
annual capacity of 1 Mt/y. The average capacity for these equipment from Australia has enabled the expansion of
mines as just above 2 Mt/y per mine, the largest being the Cao existing underground mines and development of new
Son opencast mine located in the Campha region of Quang facilities. By 2006, the production capacity of the (known)
Ninh, and which has a substantial capability of 7.5 Mt/y. mines operated by Vinacomin was estimated to rise to
65 Mt/y (while producing 38–39 Mt). This would suggest that
The few Red River projects that are under current exploration Vietnamese mines had increased capacity utilisation from

Coal production trends for Vietnam
Table 3 Statusof coal mines in Vietnam in 2003 and 2006 (MOJ, 2003; Thanh Son, 2006; VIC, 2009)
2003 2006 Opencast
Coal basin
Mine/project name Investment, 2003-10 capacity capacity, /Underground
(where identified)
kt/y kt/y (where known)
Bang Nau mine Renovation 500 1300 OC Quang Ninh
Binh Minh (Khoai Chau) mine Construction before 2010 1500 5000 Red River
Binh Minh (Thanh Cong) mine Renovation 600 1000 UG Red River
Cao Son (Dong) mine Renovation 1200 Quang Ninh
Cao Son mine Renovation 1500 7500 OC Quang Ninh
Cao Thang mine Renovation 500 400 UG
Coc Sau (North) mine Construction (in 2005) 500 700 UG Quang Ninh
Coc Sau mine Maintenance 1500 2700 OC Quang Ninh
Da Mai (Eastern) mine Renovation 380 Quang Ninh
Da Mai (Northwest) mine Renovation 350 Quang Ninh
Da Mai (Southwest) mine Renovation 300 Quang Ninh
Deo Nai mine Renovation 1500 2500 OC Quang Ninh
Dong Ri mine Renovation 600 1000 UG
Dong Vong mine Renovation 500 1000 UG Quang Ninh
Giap Khau mine Renovation 800 800 UG Quang Ninh
Ha Lam mine Renovation 800 2400 UG Quang Ninh
Ha Rang-Nui Khanh mine Renovation 500 500 UG
Ha Tu mine Maintenance 1000 2000 UG Quang Ninh
Ho Thien mine Construction 300
Ke Bao mine Construction 600
Khanh Hoa mine Renovation 400 500 OC
Khe Bo mine Maintenance 20
Khe Cham 1 mine Renovation (in 2004) 600 1100 UG Quang Ninh
Khe Cham 2 mine Construction (in 2007) 1200 3500 OC/UG Quang Ninh
Khe Cham 3 mine Construction (by 2010) 2000 2500 UG Quang Ninh
Khe Cham 4 mine Construction (in 2003) 1500 1200 UG Quang Ninh
Khe Chuoi mine Construction 500 500 UG
Khe Sim (Eastern Eastern) mine Renovation 100 Quang Ninh
Khe Sim (Western Eastern) mine Renovation 200 Quang Ninh
Khe Sim (Western) mine Construction 100 Quang Ninh
Khe Tam (North) Mine Renovation 300 Quang Ninh
Khe Tam (South) mine Renovation 800 700 Quang Ninh
Khe Tam also Duong Huy Renovation 1,500 3000 Quang Ninh
Lang Cam mine Renovation 100
Mao Khe mine Renovation 2000 1800 UG Quang Ninh
Mine 917 Renovation 300 400 OC
Mong Duong (Northeast) mine Renovation 800
Mong Duong mine Renovation 850 1500 UG
Na Duong mine Renovation 600 600 OC
Nam Mau mine Renovation 1200 3000 UG Quang Ninh
Nga Hai mine Renovation (by 2006) 1500 1500 UG Quang Ninh
Nong Son mine Renovation 232 200 OC
Nui Beo mine Renovation 1500 2500 OC Quang Ninh
Nui Hong mine Renovation 300 OC
Pham Hong Thai mine Renovation 500 UG
Quang La mine Renovation 600
Quang Loi mine Renovation 300
Tan Dan mine Renovation 300 300 UG
Thong Nhat mine Renovation 1500 1750 UG Quang Ninh
Vang Danh mine Renovation 1800 3000 UG Quang Ninh
Totals 39032 64850

49% in 2003 to 59% (on average), a marked improvement as lower cost on an FOB basis. The major role that anthracite has
a result of the increased investment in the industry. This figure in Japanese steel mills is as a pulverised coal injection fuel,
will vary from mine to mine depending on the scale of the although anthracite is also useful as a lower cost replacement
operation and the degree of investment that the mine has for coke.
undergone to improve production efficiency per tonne of coal
mined. The southern province of Guangdong in China in an example
of a region which has anthracite-fired power stations that were
designed for the local Chinese anthracite, but following rapid
9.2 Coal supply trends – domestic economic growth (in some years exceeding 13%/y for
Guangdong), the provinces own reserves were not able to
production and world trade meet the rise in demand for power. The Vietnamese reserves
Even though coal production has been occurring for in Quang Ninh are closer to Guangdong than much of China’s
170 years, IEA data records show that between 1978 and other coal reserves that are located in the northern regions of
1994, coal production stayed almost flat at around 5–6 Mt/y. Mongolia. In addition, shipping costs between Vietnam and
However by 2008, Vietnam’s production had increased to China would be lower than that of shipments from the more
more than 40 Mt/y of coal. The growth surge occurred after distant Australian ports due to the shorter voyages (assuming
1994, when Vietnam experienced a sudden growth of coal the same vessel size), and therefore reducing daily charter
demand from the industry sector, as well some increased costs.
demand from power stations. Industry and manufacturing
were beginning to expand as the economy opened up to The cost of Vietnamese coals arriving at the southern Chinese
foreign direct investment. Energy demand grew rapidly as the port of Guangzhou was quoted at 81 $/t (550 yuan/t) for
economy expanded, and to help fuel the growing energy January 2009, while equivalent products from Chinese mines
needs, so did the coal industry through a programme of in the province of Shanxi cost 84–87 $/t (570–590 yuan/t) at
modernisation and investment. the northern Chinese port of Qinhuangdao (China Daily,
2009). Considering Qinghuangdao coal requires ongoing
Around this time, Vietnam also embarked on a move to shipment to Guangzhou in the south, coal from Vietnam is
supply more coal to the world export market. Throughout the considerably more competitive while meeting the same
1980s, most of Vietnam’s exports were destined for China, but quality specification.
volumes were very small. In the 1990s, Japan became the
leading buyer of Vietnamese coal. Then by 2005, the In 2007, the southern Chinese state of Guangdong imported
emphasis had clearly shifted back towards coal exports to 14.6 Mt/y of coal, of which Vietnamese anthracite accounted
China again. In 2008, China’s demand for Vietnamese coal for 5 Mt/y. The autonomous region of Guanxi in China
had grown from just 1% of 3.5 Mt/y to 90% of 20 Mt/y. imported 14 Mt/y of coal in 2007, of which 13.3 Mt/y was
sourced from Vietnam (Energy Daily, 2008). Combined, these
A vast majority of the exports are destined for Chinese power two regions imported more than 18 Mt/y of Vietnamese
stations, however the 2–4 Mt/y of anthracite that is shipped to anthracites accounting for a considerable proportion of
Japan is typically of a higher quality for use in Japanese steel Vietnam’s total exports.
mills. Anthracite mined in Hon Gai has commonly been
shipped to Japan with exports of just 1–2 Mt/y (Kobayashi, In recent years, disruptions and the forced cessation (due to a
2004). Hon Gai is close to the ports of Hon Gai and Campha, clamp down on smuggling) of supply have become
and therefore inland transport costs are low and so ensuring a commonplace between Vietnam and China, although the
Table 4 Vietnamese hard coal exports by destination country
1978 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2006 2007 2008
Total exports 1430 640 604 745 2821 3526 15560 25128 30931 20604
Belgium – – – – 93 240 166 105 222 92
France – – – – 179 100 155 123 87 48
Japan – 100 100 150 1469 2227 2805 3319 3668 1972
Korea – – – 300 400 516 496 644 1295 916
Brazil – – – – 100 88 388 125 54 160
Bulgaria – – – – – – – 102 387 372
China, People’s Republic – 540 504 100 150 27 10532 20079 24611 16906
Chinese Taipei – – – – 63 52 118 43 17 22
Other 1430 0 0 195 200 156 887 371 590 116

impact on the larger Chinese market is minimal. Illegal coal output could be exported. Even some of the largest export
trading is not unknown in Vietnam. Interestingly, news reports operations operated bandit mines, but since the 1990s, there
in 2009 suggested that staff at Vinacomin were allegedly has been less reporting of these types of operations, and the
involved in falsifying invoices for coals heading for China, subsequent formation of Vinacomin appears to have
and instead declaring them as going to Vietnamese customers consolidated the mining industry even more.
(VBF, 2009a). Coal thefts and smuggling have long been rife,
but theft is usually from legally produced coal. Consequently,
while illegal production is likely to exist, it may not be 9.3 Coal imports
significant, or easy, to quantify.
As Figure 13 shows, coal imports are negligible, however,
Illegal coal mining has been a problem in the past. In 1999, a future coal-fired stations located in the southern regions of
report of government attempts to close bandit mines was Vietnam could rely increasingly on imported coal from
published (Philion, 1999). Interestingly, the term bandit mines Australia, Indonesia, and perhaps Russia as a cost-effective
refers to mines that refuse to sell all or part of its output via source of coal (see Chapter 16.3). It seems ironic that Vietnam
the official channels of (former) Vinacoal and instead sell coal is capable of shipping coal to southern China competitively,
directly to end-consumers. Some bandit mines are but the country may need to draw on foreign coal to supply
state-owned, and controlled by any number of parties such as future power stations in the south. Perhaps this is a trend
Communist Party officials, military units, criminal gangs and towards building a different fleet of coal-fired power stations
private trading companies. designed to burn bituminous coals rather than specific designs
geared towards burning just local anthracites
It was claimed at the time that the formation of Vinacoal in (see Chapter 19). Part of this need to import more coal will
1995 would reestablish state control in the mining industry diversify the sources of coal. While security of supply is an
and bring an end to bandit mining which was fragmented and essential remit for most energy policies worldwide, it is
difficult to control. Philion commented that Vinacoal simply interesting that Vietnam is resorting to the international
centralised the purchase of coal from bandit mines and seaborne coal market as an economic and secure form of coal
encouraged expansion of bandit operations, especially if the supply.
50
40 production
imports
30 exports
20
10
Mt
-10
-20
-30
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
Figure 13 Development of Vietnamese coal production and international trade since 1978, Mt (IEA, 2009)

10 Methods of mining coal
More than two thirds of Vietnamese coal output comes from In most opencast mines in Quang Ninh, about 70% of
opencast mines (Dac and others, 2008). This is supported by overburden/interburden is blasted prior to hauling to a
evidence presented by Van (2007) who reported that surface disposal area. The coal itself (hardness factors of 4 on the
mining made up 60% of annual yield and that opencast Mohr scale) is extracted without the use of explosives. Where
mining has historically been the main form of coal mining in coal is significantly harder, coal is ripped to improve the
Vietnam (see Figure 14). However, this seems at odds with excavation process. The complex geology of the Quang Ninh
the fact that two thirds of the country’s capacity is geared coal seams means that dragline mining is not possible, and
towards underground mining. In 2005, the estimated mining hence the use of excavators and trucks is common practice.
capacity of coal was 65 Mt, of which opencast was 27 Mt and The factors that affect the choice of opencast mining methods
underground 38 Mt. are discussed briefly in Baruya (2007).
Opencast mining conditions vary depending on the depth of

10.1 Opencast coal mining the seams, the thickness of the coal seams, and the continuity
of the seam. Discontinuities and geological movements can
Opencast mining in Vietnam is currently dominated by truck create difficult operating conditions for opencast mines
and shovel methods (Ritschel and Schiffer, 2008). For especially when the seams dip steeply. This often leads to
example, the Indonesian company Indominco operates a small multiple benches for the safe operation of heavy equipment,
opencast mine of 0.6 Mt/y, although mines of this modest and as the seams dip deeper into the earth the overburden
capacity account for around a third of the country’s total mine removal becomes more of a cost factor. One example is
capacity. According to official Indominco reports, the mining Vinacomin’s Deo Nai mine, which is an opencast operation
operation is carried out by conventional truck and shovel with a capacity of some 2.5 Mt/y (recorded in 2006), although
methods with a multibench system (Sumampow, 2004). subsequent output figures from the official company website
suggests production of 2.8 Mt/y. The overburden removal
Bui and Drebenstedt (2004) described in detail the typical before coal extraction is considerable, with removal in 2008
equipment that was used throughout the (opencast) coal estimated to total 21 million m3. With an output level of
industry in 2003. Some of the major kit used for the important 2.8 Mt/y, the ‘stripping ratio’ was 7.5. This means 7.5 billion
task of earth moving included Russian EKG hydraulic cubic metres per tonne (bcm/t) of output.
shovels. Overburden and rock haulage was carried out using
27–50 t dump trucks from manufacturers such as BelAZ Projections for 2009-11 showed that the overburden removal
(Belarus), Komatsu (Japan), and the Caterpillar 769C (USA). would increase to 23.6 million m3, while output in this period
Coal haulage is done using smaller 10–30 t payload trucks would be lower at 2.6 Mt/y (from 2.8 Mt/y in 2008). This
from Russia, Japan, and Sweden. infers two things, the seams are occurring deeper in the
30
opencast
underground
25
20
Mt/y
15
10
0
0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Figure 14 Coal production split by opencast and underground in 2000-08, Mt (Dac and others, 2008)

Methods of mining coal
ground, while the occurrence of coal is lessening. Extracting to lapse and be found smoking cigarettes in hazardous areas.
less coal can be due to any number of reasons, either the Another major problem causing loss of life is water ingress
seams are thinning or there is greater fragmentation in the into the underground workings. Improving monitoring and
seam. Either way, the stripping ratio is expected to increase by modelling of water levels in the ground is being co-developed
16% to 8.7 bcm/t of coal. with the Japan Coal Energy Center.
Interestingly, Thanh Son (2006) published projected

overburden material trends along with projected raw 10.3 Labour productivity –
production to the year 2025. Dividing the overburden material considerable potential for
by the raw production shows the average stripping ratio could
increase from around 6.8–7.8 in 2005-08, to more than 8.0 by
improvement
2012, and gradually increasing to around 10.0 by 2025. The coal industry employs 83,000 people, more than 80% of
Historically, stripping ratios averaged 4.5–6.5 in the period which are employed directly (Van, 2007). This figure is lower
2000 to 2005. The projected trend suggests future coal than in previous years, but not by a significant amount.
extraction will incur rising costs and face even more difficult Mechanisation is in its infancy and the manning levels of the
mining conditions as the coal seams get deeper and possibly coal industry remain high with a great deal of manual labour
more complex. still prevalent. Employee figures for coal mining range from
68,890 employees employed directly by the industry to
83,000 in total for the sector (Van, 2007). Assuming a
10.2 Underground coal mining production level of 44 Mt in 2007, then labour productivity
was around a mere 530–639 t/man-year, comparing with
Deep mined coal accounts for some 40% of the country’s some of the poorest performing mines in China. At this level,
output. Underground coal mining is currently done at depths productivity is low.
of 300 m, but new deposits of coal are being found at depths
of 1000 m and more. While today’s industry is marred with Much of the productivity in other exporting countries is
poor adherence to safety measures, the future underground attributed to the mechanised nature of modern coal mining,
coal mining industry must adopt safer working practices at efficiency and reliability of the capital employed, and training
even greater depths. and education of the workforce. Vietnamese mines probably
operate at a tenth of the productivity of other major exporting
One of the key initiatives to improve performance in countries (Ritschel and Schiffer, 2008). Clearly, there is a
underground mines is the move to enhance safety measures in great deal of scope for rationalisation and potential for capital
the daily operations. In 2006, the coal industry accounted for expenditure in the industry. While the industry has already
20% of deaths related to occupational accidents in Vietnam. gone through a period of major rationalisation, clearly more
In 2008, accidents claimed the lives of 39 mine workers in 29 could feasibly be done. According to Philion (1999), the
incidents. Accidents are increasing, which is partly due to Vietnamese coal industry rationalised the workforce, which
carelessness and also the increasing complexity of the stood at 86,000 in 1999. Some 70,000 were on long-term
geology of the mines, but above all, the ramping up of contracts, while 16,000 were on short-term contracts and were
operations of coal mines (MNRE, 2009). Part of the trend that subject to either temporary (seasonal) or permanent
is leading to increased reported accidents is the move away redundancy. During a period of stoppages in 1999, lasting at
from opencast mining towards the more hazardous least three months at certain mines, it was deemed that miners
underground mining. would receive a wage of around 18.5 $/month. Presumably
this would be to cover basic necessities and living expenses,
One of the development plans that was announced in the but some wages during this period were as low as
Prime Minister’s Decision of July 2008 was to improve the 7.2 $/month.
facilities at existing mines where safety was inadequate. Pit
props in existing underground mines were to be upgraded In the 1990s, wages were notoriously irregular, and some
from wood and metal to modern hydraulic supports, although smaller mines were unable to pay their miners for up to three
this would suggest that mining techniques would shift from months. In 2000, it was estimated that 20,000 of the 70,000
crude bord and pillar to longwall systems. In addition, the permanent staff would be made redundant. The IMF and
industry is increasing the use of anchor bolts in the main areas World Bank had been pushing for a major reduction in the
of mine works, where previously the workings would have workforce since the 1980s. These two international
been relying on wooden props or coal seam pillars. organisation had been extensively involved in technical
projects advising the Vietnamese government on privatisation
The coal industry spent $106 million on modernising mine and deregulation. Interestingly, the European coal industry
facilities. Part of the investment has been the increased use of itself was still largely state-run or operating under
hydraulic props and gas detection equipment. However, aside monopolistic market conditions, and the UK coal industry had
from the technical solutions, a great deal of change has had to only been privately run for little more than a decade, so
occur in the regulatory and enforcement aspects of coal passing on this wisdom to the Vietnam industry was bold. By
mining safety. Training, supervision, and enforcement of this time, more of Vietnam’s coal mining workforce was
procedures remain a problem amongst some workers. Worker moved to temporary and seasonal contracts.
discipline is considered to be lacking on occasions.
Procedures and rules exist, but it is not unknown for workers Much of the rationalisation was because coal stocks were too

Methods of mining coal
high, and production had to be reined back to rebalance the adopt more westernised methods of coal extraction, more
market. Today, the Vietnamese industry is an export business mechanisation, and much safer monitoring and practice.
that can relieve much of its stockpiling by supplying more to
the world’s market for anthracite. However, there is clearly
continuing pressure to reduce the headcount of mining
personnel, but this will prove extremely problematic where
some mines have given rise to townships that provide almost
all the employment in the local region. For example, the coal
industry is a major, if not the largest employer, in Quang
Ninh. In the mid-1990s, 90% of Campha’s population derived
their income from the coal industry (Thuren, 2000).
According to Van (2007), the income for an employee in the

coal industry in Vietnam was VND 1.5–5.0 million, averaging
VND 3.8 million. Assuming an average exchange rate for
2007 of 16421 VND per US$ (OandA, 2009), then the income
averages 230 $/month, but can range from 91 $/month to
304 $/month. This figure however does not take into account
the purchasing power parity, which would inflate the wage
figure by three times in the case of Vietnam. The coal industry
attracts a great deal of labour since it is a comparatively well
paid profession. Some factory workers are reported to be
earning as little as 50 $/month, suggesting the premium that is
applied to being a mine worker in Vietnam.
While the pre-rationalisation labour figures suggest that

wages were low, low productivity meant that the labour cost
per tonne remained relatively high. Based on the average
labour salary of 230 $/month for 2007, this equates to an
annual salary cost of $230 million (assuming a total
workforce of 83,000 people). Assuming the country produced
roughly 43 Mt of coal in 2007, this labour cost estimate
equates to an average cost of 5.4 $/t, ranging between 2 and
7 $/t. It is worth noting that this figure considers the cost of
salaries alone. Van (2007) does not indicate what further costs
are incurred by Vinacomin to employ staff or provide
pensions, occupational health and medical expenses, bonuses,
insurance, etc.
Using salary as a proxy for labour costs, it is reasonable to

assume that the actual cost incurred by Vinacomin is indeed
higher than that specified here. Nevertheless, given the
extremely low productivity in the Vietnamese coal industry,
this cost level of 5 $/t is higher than the average of most of the
other major coal exporting countries, which range between
1 and 4 $/t (Baruya, 2007). As such, the high average cost of
Vietnamese labour in the coal industry does not mean such
cost levels do not exist elsewhere. In the most expensive
mines in China, labour can cost in excess of 20 $/t, but these
do not make up the norm where the average can be as low as
1 $/t in large modern mines.
Therefore, the potential to improve productivity is immense

through further rationalisation of labour and improved
mechanisation. Vietnam would need to adopt a firm
management approach through Vinacomin, in much the same
way the industry in China has been transformed. At the
moment, Vietnam has few competitors in the international
market for anthracite, while the domestic coal market is
entirely controlled by Vinacomin, and so the need for
reducing labour costs might not be urgent. However, when
developing newer fields, it is more likely Vinacomin will

11 Estimating the cost of coal production in Vietnam
Estimating the cost of producing coal is difficult due to the all sales at standard prices, and then distributed funds to all
provision of subsidies for poor performing mines. Total collieries to cover their respective costs, inevitably yielding
production costs can be derived using clues from reported winners and losers. Reforming a system is not a simple
prices paid by Vietnamese industrial end-users, published undertaking, but necessary.
export FOB costs, and/or establishing cost components such
as labour costs and exports taxes which can help build a
partial picture of representative costs associated with 11.2 Deriving the component costs
Vietnamese coal mine operations.
of production
The degree to which coal prices to power stations are Figure 15 shows the approximate shares of various input
subsidised is not openly published, but some evidence points factors that make up the cost of production in the Vietnamese
to the delivered prices paid by power utilities, chiefly the state coal industry. The split combines the cost elements associated
monopoly utility EVN. A report by the World Bank (2007b) with both opencast and underground mines. Consequently, the
investigating the country’s power infrastructure stated the cost profile for each type of mine, and indeed, for each
uncertainty in domestic coal pricing. Clarity on how coal individual mine may look very different to this. What is not
prices move is important for the power industry, as the shown obviously, but may be categorised under ‘Other’ is the
optimal role of coal-fired plant is sensitive to fuel prices. An tax imposed on producers to finance environmental protection
immediate concern is the costing of fuel for power projects, to measures. An environment fund was established in 1996 by
achieve positive returns on investment especially amongst the Vinacoal, which drew 1% of the cost price of coal mining and
private power industry, which is being encouraged by other related activities to fund environmental protection
government. methods.
Haddad (2006) examines cost structures for a number of coal

11.1 Making a loss from Vietnamese exporting countries, and uses representative costs for
Australian mines. At the time Haddad published the article in
end-users 2006, it was shown that opencast mines had a much greater
In 2004, Vinacoal sold coal to EVN at a Government share taken up by the cost of oil products and explosives (20%
regulated price of 22 $/t, a level considerably below that of and 28% respectively). Underground mines had little or no
prevailing international prices at the time, even when adjusted expenditure on fuel and explosives, but had additional
for fuel quality. The price of 22 $/t was considered below the elements such as roof bolts, and a higher proportion of energy
cost of production. Vinacoal was therefore making a financial use to run ventilation and pumps. Spare parts for shovels,
loss on every tonne of coal it supplied to the domestic power haulage trucks, cutting tools, ancillary machinery, conveyor
market. systems, tyres, safety supports, and other hazard equipment
all fall into the items labelled materials and others.
However, the World Bank study team went further to observe
that the price of 22 $/t appeared quite high, compared to If these component splits are representative, it is possible to
several large open pit mines producing similar coal in China. construct a total cost of production based on the knowledge
attained from establishing the average salary of staff
In 2009, the price of coal paid by power generators was
reported to be 26–27 $/t, compared with an average cost of depreciation 9%
production of 38 $/t. Whether this includes rail or barge
social insurance 2%
transport is not clear. If it is included in the price (say others 23%
2–6 $/t), then the cost ex-mine could be 32–36 $/t. With salaries /
wages 27%
production costs exceeding the price to end-users, losses for
coal sold to power generators could therefore be 2–9 $/t
depending on what assumptions are made. In 2006, the
demand for coal in the power sector was around 4–5 Mt/y.
Logically, the losses to Vinacomin could mount to $36–45
million per year. Estimated demand for domestic coal in 2010
could be as high as 10 Mt/y, and so assuming the same cost
and price levels as 2009, the losses could therefore be double.
The World Bank observed that there existed a wide disparity materials 25%
in unit costs between different collieries. Efficient lower cost energy 4%
producers cross subsidised higher-cost, inefficient producers.
oil 10%
Inefficient producers at the time were given little incentive to
improve performance at the mine as individual collieries were Figure 15 Percentage split of coal production costs
not trading coal in a transparent market. Vinacoal undertook (Thanh Son, 2006)

Estimating the cost of coal production in Vietnam
depreciation 1.8 export coal from Vietnam. According to news reports, it is

social insurance 0.4 known that FOB export prices for Vietnamese anthracite
others 4.6 destined for Japanese steel mills (JSM) track the prices of
Australian coking coal to the JSMs (Reuters, 2008). Evidence
salaries / of FOB prices suggest that Vietnamese coals were being
wages 5.4
exported in 2007 at 70 $/t. This later increased to 260 $/t in
2008 in line with the trend in world energy prices (Reuters,
2008). Other price information reported by the IEA in Paris
and Vinacomin suggest that Australian coking coal was
trading at similar prices, supporting other reports of parity
with Australian coking coal.
A consultant’s report suggests that a mine in the Uong Bi

materials 5.0
region was supplying coal in 2009 at an FOB cost of 35.7 $/t.
energy 0.8 A coal mine in Campha close to the port was supplying coal
oil 2.0 at 33 $/t. While it is not clear what the cost of operations are,
the two figures are remarkably similar considering that the
Figure 16 Estimated costs of production based on coal sourced further inland in Quang Ninh, and from an
20 $/t total cost (author’s estimates) underground operation, sold for just 2–3 $/t more than the
coal that was supplied from an opencast mine close to the
mentioned earlier. If the average labour cost is 5 $/t, then the coast.
percentage split shown in Figure 15 would suggest the costs
of production would be as illustrated in Figure 16. The Tex Report (2009) published FOB cost figures for
Vietnam steam coal, with average export prices being around
The likelihood of the cost of mining in Vietnam being 20 $/t is 57–58 $/t (FOB) in September 2009 (averaging 52 $/t for the
not impossible, but could be too low. An unconfirmed report of first nine months of 2009). The equivalent FOB Australian
the cost of production being closer to 40 $/t was published in (export steam coal) Newcastle price published by McCloskey
early 2008 (MCIS, 2008a). At 40 $/t, this would suggest that showed steam coal prices trending at an average 70–80 $/t in
actual production costs were double that of the author’s the last quarter of 2009. At a level of 57–58 $/t, Vietnamese
estimates. Further evidence is suggested by The Vietnam FOB prices for steam coal are therefore competitive compared
Business News, which reported in 2009 regarding the cost of with some other major Far Eastern suppliers.
coal paid by power plants. The report stated that power plant
operators were paying 26–27 $/t, presumably delivered to the While the price of export coal is relatively straightforward to
station (VBF, 2009). According to the news agency, this was assess, the price of coal to Vietnamese end-users is discussed
70% of the actual cost of production, and so when scaling up, briefly in news reports, but not frequently quoted. The prices
the Vinacomin cost of production is probably 38 $/t (assuming of coal to industry were estimated to have risen sharply in
transport and storage is included within this cost). 2008 in line with world prices, causing major inflationary
pressures on the major coal using industries (outside of power
This means Vinacomin was probably making a loss of at least generation). The industries that were most affected were the
9 $/t on every tonne of coal sold to the power generators paper, cement and chemical production industries. Depending
(see earlier). The price of export steam coal averaged 54 $/t, on the coal product, the estimated price of ‘coal dust’ (which
yielding a profit of 28 $/t. The export market therefore would is a relatively low calorific value product) ranged between 40
remain an important part of the business to keep Vinacomin and 70 $/t (0.8–1.2 million VND/t for products ranging 3a-4b
profitable (assuming half of Vinacomin’s production was under the Vietnamese classification (VBF, 2008a) in the
export related). period 2007-08.
As anthracite sometimes trades internationally at a price Vietnam news reports also stated that the cost of coal to main
closer to world coking coal prices (at times double that of industrial buyers, namely cement, paper, and chemicals was
steam coal), it is little wonder that the Vietnamese industry is around 50% of the price of export coal (Vietnamnet, 2008).
in little rush to greatly rationalise the workforce. Given the However, in 2008 the tax on coal exports was 20%, and the
low productivity and high manning levels, it is possible that end-users might be paying 5% VAT (typically refundable). So
the cost of production could range anywhere between 20 and when all taxes are accounted for the price paid by Vietnamese
40 $/t, with some mines operating at a lower cost, especially end-users may well be closer to 60% of the export cost of
larger opencast mines and possibly some longwall operating coal, rather than 50%, but without firmer evidence this is not
underground mines. possible to verify.
Adding to the confusion of how accurate prices can be

11.3 Deriving end-user prices from derived, the tax on export coal was 0% prior to 2007. It then
increased to 10% in January 2007, rising to 15% in April
Vietnamese export coal 2007, and again to 20% in July 2008. Exports taxes have
The reporting of Vietnamese prices tends to be limited to that undergone extreme changes in recent years. Taxes apply to
for export trade. A number of reports allude to the cost of crude oil and mineral products as well as food commodities.

Estimating the cost of coal production in Vietnam
In January 2009, the National Assembly Standing Committee

approved Government proposals to raise the ceiling export tax
rate on coal from 20% to 45% (QNTD, 2008). The possible
rise in export tax was deemed acceptable since the price
controls on coal within the country’s internal market were
partially lifted, thus freeing up opportunities for Vinacomin to
charge Vietnamese end-users higher tariffs. However by
February 2009 the Ministry of Finance announced that instead
of tax rising to 45%, the tax would be halved from 20% to
10%. This was done with the aim of Vinacomin to raise more
funds for capital investment. It also gives Vinacomin the
opportunity to lower export prices if they need to compete
with other foreign exporters. If this is the case, then the price
of export steam coal would be somewhere around 80–140 $/t.
Given this period was during a major upheaval in world
energy prices it is difficult to draw any firm relationships with
domestic and export prices. Given the FOB price of coal to
the Japanese steel mills ranged between 70 and 260 $/t, then
the author’s estimates for domestic coal prices to industry are
not unreasonable given the current turbulence in energy
markets.
If the price of coal to Vietnamese power stations is

considered, the delivered cost of coal to EVN’s power stations
are estimated to be 45% of export prices at around 40–70 $/t.
It is most likely that the price of coal would be at the lower
end of the range since the power generation sector remains
exempt from market set coal prices, but even at this level it
could be considered too high.
Vinacoal (World Bank, 2007b) and others advocated a gradual

increase in the coal price to Vietnamese end-users until prices
reached parity with imports (at least on a CIF basis to
Vietnamese ports) and adjusted for quality. It is considered
that competition in the domestic coal market between a larger
number of domestic suppliers will best achieve the price
parity with international prices. This however suggests that
the market needs to be liberalised and suggests the possibility
that significant parts of the coal industry will need to be
privatised. Joint stock companies have emerged as major
operators but Vinacomin remains the primary corporation that
produces, trades, and sells coal.
If pricing policy remains one where the Government sets

prices, it is not advisable to fix coal prices at import parity
levels until (a) a strong, independent review of production
costs and efficiency incentives is completed, (b) a transparent
and clear way of estimating the economic rent which will
accrue to Vinacomin is developed and agreed, and (c) clear
agreement is reached in the Government as to how such rents
will be collected and used.

12 Inland transport and port infrastructure
There is little published material regarding coal movements but some clues are provided by a major coal using industry,
around Vietnam, and the modes by which coal is transported. the cement industry. The cement association has raised cost
This section provides a representative picture of how some issues on transport fees between mine and cement plants.
power stations procure coal supplies in some parts of northern According to the association, Vinacomin charged cement
Vietnam. Export coal is trucked from the mine face to companies 5.9 $/t (98,000 VND/t) in 2008 to carry coal from
processing and crushing plants, from which coal can be Ninh Bin port to Nho Quan cement workshop. However, the
barged or hauled by rail, or a combination of both to the cost of hiring other carriers reduces the cost significantly, to
major ports on the coast. around 2.0 $/t (30–35,000 VND/t). At these relatively low
costs, it would suggest the coal is transported by rail or barge.
12.1 Truck and rail The Vietnam Railway Cooperation (VRC) is the sole supplier
of rail services in Vietnam. VRC’s internal business has been
Vinacomin operates a vehicle fleet consisting of mainly restructured into four main business groups: two passenger
Russian and Ukrainian vehicles. Truck capacities vary from train operating entities (North and South), a freight train
5 to 20 t, and articulated trucks from14 to 30 t. The equipment operating company and a looser grouping of regional
and components are designed to cope with tropical climes, infrastructure administrations. The train operating entities are
and batteries and tyres are manufactured in Vietnam. Trucks quasi-independent management and accounting entities.
are also built within Vietnam, although most trucks are
foreign branded such as Russian truck makers Kamaz and The Vietnam Railway Administration remains responsible for
Kraz. It is likely that the unit costs of transport by road are planning development of the sector, for new construction and
higher than by rail (see Baruya, 2007). for securing resources for maintenance. The VRC pays 10%
of its gross revenues as a track access charge. These funds are
Many of the major coal power stations are minemouth, so are generally used toward infrastructure maintenance. Despite a
located close to the mine or mine processing facility. Under network which is small, old and has received negligible
these circumstances coal can easily be trucked or transported investment for upgrading, the VRC has performed reasonably
by conveyor directly to the power station silos. Rail is also well.
used where there is suitable access to a rail line and where the
journey from mine to power station is longer. Vietnam does not have the concentrated flows of bulk raw
materials or the long distances which give rise to heavy rail
For example, coal supplied for the 100 MWe Cao Ngan power freight flows. The average passenger train load in Vietnam is
plant is exploited from the two mines Khanh Hoa and Nui around 370 passengers which is relatively high, but average
Hong and transported to the plant by the existing railway freight load of 225 t is low, as a result of low axle-weight
network to Quan Trieu station (Duc Thao, 2004). At the infrastructure, short crossing loops and possible sub-optimal
station, the coal was stockpiled in a 50/50 blend of products freight operating plans.
from each mine and transferred to the plant by conveyors. In
the first ten years, the 50/50 blend of the two mines’ coal was The Vietnamese railway network consists of seven lines with
to be used. When Khanh Hoa mine is depleted of coal a total length of 2632 km. All lines are single track, 2169 km
reserves, coal will be supplied entirely from Nui Hong. of which is one metre (narrow) gauge. The rest consist of
standard gauge (1.425 m) which accounts for 178 km, and
Another example of coal logistics is the Na Doung, a 253 km of double gauge tracks towards the Chinese border
100 MW lignite-fired station. The plant is a CFB boiler which runs along the narrow and standard gauge track (VNR,
system (see Section 19.2) and in this case will be located at 2009)
the minemouth. Coal is transported by truck to an unloading
hopper station at a screening plant, and then taken to the Narrow gauge tracking is easier to construct and maintain
power station by conveyor to the storage area at the plant site. than standard gauge, but also limits the ability to take large
loads for freight and passenger traffic. Narrow gauge railways
For larger plants, such as the 400 MWe Uong Bi power plant, however have the benefit of tighter turning radii, and so in a
a rail line transports coal directly from the Vang Danh coal country predominated with hilly or mountainous terrain,
mine to the power plant in larger quantities (Smith, 2007). narrow gauge track offers a cost effective solution to rail
The Uong Bi is a subcritical plant burning anthracite and the infrastructure. According to the Tokyo National Graduate
largest and newest unit (300 MWe Uong Bi 3) was Institute for Policy Studies or GRIPS (2003), Quang Ninh
commissioned in 2006. Bigger still is the 1000 MWe Pha Lai operated an additional 64 km of railway that has a gauge of
plant, one of the largest coal-fired stations in Vietnam. Like 0.8 m dedicate to coal transportation, suggesting that rail cars
Uong Bi, it is served by rail for receiving large coal loads would be small and the load capacity poor (GRIPS, 2003).
from the local Quang Ninh mines in Cam Pha, Hon Gai and However, a bulk of the country’s coal rail links are most likely
Uong Bi fields. to operate on the 1.435 m gauge.
There is scant information regarding the cost of rail freight, Vietnam aims to gradually modernise the rail network, but it

Inland transport and port infrastructure
is unlikely to completely replace the 1 metre gauge system. resulting primarily from the demand for coal from power
Improvements and expansion will be consistent with the stations within Vietnam, as well as the potential for exports.
existing system, although high speed rail routes will use Barge capacities are little more than 2500 dwt, and so
1.435 m. The need to increase rail will go some way to relieve shipments are small. Coal theft is rife in parts of Vietnam,
the pressure on road transport, and the increase in the speeds especially along the hundreds of miles of winding waterways.
of freight and passenger rolling stock will help increase the
performance of the system.
12.3 Port export capacity
12.2 River and canal Vietnam has some 30 ports along the northern, central and
southern coast of the country. According to Thanh Son (2006)
According to the World Bank (2007a), Vietnam has of Vinacomin, in 2006 the total export capacity for ports in
41,000 km of natural waterways, of which 8000 km are used Vietnam is around 34 Mt (see Table 5) operating through six
commercially. Of these, the Vietnam Inland Waterways operations that are localised largely in just two places,
Administration manages about 6000 km as well as the main CamPha and Hon Gai, the former handling a bulk of the
river ports; local governments manage the balance of the country’s exports. Both port terminals serve the region of
commercial waterways. Quang Ninh in the north east where the coal export business
is concentrated.
Despite limited investment, the waterways remain attractive
for the transport of coal, rice, sand, stone, gravel, and other The chief port is Campha (or Cam Pha), which is operated by
usually high weight low value goods. Livelihoods and the Campha Port and Logistics Company, a subsidiary of
personal transport depend heavily and successfully on Vinacomin. This therefore puts much of the coal supply chain
waterway transport in the delta regions of the Mekong and firmly under the control of Vinacomin. Campha Port was built
Red River. The inland waterway system is managed by nine long before the formation of Vinacomin in the 1990s. The port
state waterway management companies. Inland waterway was built in 1894 and put into operation in 1924.
transport services are provided by state-owned enterprises
operating under two state corporations attached to the Today’s Campha port can handle vessels of up to 78,000 dwt
Ministry of Transport Northern Waterway Transport and has a port storage capacity of 600,000 t. According to the
Corporation and Southern Waterway Transport Corporation; official website of Campha port (www.camphaport.com.vn)
specialised state-owned transport companies under other the 2007 throughput was 20.4 Mt, of which 18 Mt was
ministries carry materials to cement plants, paper mills and exported to foreign destinations, and 2.4 Mt was transported
construction material enterprises, and private for-hire to other Vietnamese users within the country.
operators.
Campha port has four main shiploaders, with a combined
Private operators have expanded their market share capacity of 38,000 t/d. Freak weather events in 2008 put much
significantly in recent years. Foreign companies can provide of the loading capacity out of action. With so much coal being
transport services on the waterways through joint ventures in funnelled through few ports, it creates potential bottlenecks
which the foreigner’s share does not exceed 49%. Freight and for export supply of anthracite. However, few reports of such
passenger transport rates are freely determined by negotiation. events seem to occur, and supply disruptions do not seem to
be a major issue for Vietnamese coal exports.
In 2005, the Transport Development and Strategic Institute
carried out a study on inland waterways in the northern region Campha Port handles 80% of Vietnam’s 20 Mt or so of
of Vietnam, part of which encompassed the coal producing exports, of which 75% is destined for China, and the rest to
region of Quang Ninh, but concentrated mainly on the Japan (MCIS, 2008c). Other reports state that a significant
demand and economic centres around Hanoi. According to proportion of Vietnamese exports are barged across the
this study, some 20 Mt of coal was transported by river barge
(World Bank, 2008). This makes river transportation a
significant provider of infrastructure for the coal mines and Table 5 Capacity of coal export ports (Mt/y)
power stations, possibly contributing to the movement of a (Thanh Son, 2006)
quarter of the country’s coal and also a quarter of the tonnage
carried by the waterways (legally) in 2005. Coal-fired stations Port name Mt/y
and cement works may be sited close to such waterways,
Total 34
partly for coal transport, but power stations are often adjacent
to rivers for cooling water. Cam Pha/Cua Ong 15
New ports in Cam Pha 10

One of the most important outcomes of the study is the
growth in volumes of coal, and coal related goods that will Hon Gai/Nam Cau Trang 3
make use of inland waterways, recognising a massive need for
investment in improving equipment and services throughout Hon Gai/Dien Vang 1.5
all the main courses, tributaries, and canals in and around the Hon Gai/Troi 1.5
Red River, Duong River, and Da Bach River regions. By
2020, coal movements could rise to a considerable 50 Mt/y Uong Bi/Dien Cong 3

Inland transport and port infrastructure
Chinese border in small 1500 t barges (MCIS, 2008b). It is

possible that the barges pass through Campha, but Campha is
not on the border with China, rather it is within easy reach of
it. Assuming barge movements carry coal directly over the
border via river passage only, some 10 Mt/y is barged this
way (MCIS, 2008c), meaning that just under half of all the
exports coming from Vietnam are using this method. Of the
10 Mt/y, it is estimated that 5 Mt/y comes from Vinacomin,
and 5 Mt/y from other small suppliers. The voyages take just
eight hours, but the government has been keen to take better
control over these shipments and stop smuggling, which
avoids tax exports (20% as of 16 June 2008). There is
therefore some inconsistency in the throughput figures of
exports and the mode by which coal is transported out of the
country.
Much of the eastern coastal waters off Vietnam are fairly

shallow which in the past has limited ships to a deadweight of
10,000. However, excavation work at the port of Campha in
recent years has meant that 65,000–80,000 dwt ships can be
handled. Hon Gai port handles smaller Handysize/Panamax
ships 10,000–65,000 dwt, and it is unlikely there will be any
development to expand due to its status as a UN National
Heritage site. It is more likely operations will be more tightly
controlled.
In Central Vietnam, where coal resources exist in more

limited amounts, a new deep water port is planned for Khe
Ga. The port will serve primarily the export of aluminium, but
there could also be facilities to import coal. The port could
handle 80,000 dwt Panamax vessels and so fairly large vessels
could operate in and out of Khe Ga.

13 Environmental standards
Environmental degradation created from coal operations is a that sources the Lan Thap Water Plant (Steelguru, 2009).
serious concern for Vietnam’s Quang Ninh province, and
increasingly expenditure on protection measures is being A report by researchers at the Uong Bi Natural Resources and
made, but arguably falls short of what is required. Since 1996, Environment Agency and the Hanoi University of Natural
an environment fund was established by the former Vinacoal, Sciences stated that 750 t to 800 t of coal dust floated into
and drew 1% of the cost price of coal mining and other Vang Danh Commune every year. The researchers also said
related activities to fund environmental protection methods. dust contamination exceeded safety levels by a factor of ten
As of 2005, VND 60–70 billion had been spent to implement throughout the town. The report found open water sources
programmes and projects for minimising environmental were contaminated by harmful substances at levels hundreds
pollution, protecting biological diversification and solving of times higher than regulations allow. In 2003, Vinacomin
environmental matters in coal mining activities (UNESCAP, declared in a press release that two of its affiliates, Coc Sau
2007). Coal JSC and Deo Nai Coal JSC, were discharging pollutants
into the natural environment. In 2008, three other operations
were found causing similar problems at Mong Duong, Thong
13.1 Opencast mining Nhat and Nam Mau.
Opencast mining is a method of mining that has been fraught Clearly, modern production techniques of dust suppression
with environmental degradation. In the past, mining and waste water treatment must be adopted industry-wide and
equipment was old and obtained from old eastern European enforced with proper regulatory measures to alleviate these
and Russian mines. This has changed and modernisation is problem. According to UNESCAP (2007), the environmental
under way in all mines but, despite productivity gains, monitoring is regularly conducted according to regulations at
opencast mining could cease to exist by 2020. most mines and preparation plants. Funded by UNDP, the
project VIE-95/003 on environmental protection in opencast
Coal mining activities result in discharges of waste water, mining in Quang Ninh has been implemented. Moreover,
dust, and overburden removal into the natural environment. other environmental protection projects sponsored by SIDA,
Air pollution is produced from coal dust and mine blasting, JICA have been set up or implemented. While these may set
while acidification of surface waters (pH2–4) and river and standards for a few mines, the outreach to all operations will
stream sedimentation is caused by runoff from overburden be limited by the regulatory regime and enforcement of
disposal sites. Deforestation and land degradation is a major standards.
problem from coal mining. During rainy periods, overburden
can destroy 200 ha of agricultural land every year. Relocation
of homes and families has been common. 13.3 Other environmental issues
Bui and Drebenstadt (2004) discuss the characteristics of the Vietnam signed the United Nations Framework Convention
Quang Ninh region as being tropical with a rainy season from on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in November 1994, and
May to October, while the cool dry season is from November ratified the Kyoto Protocol (KP) in August 2002. Vietnam
to April. The heavy rainfall affects surface water, which fulfils requirements to host Clean Development Mechanisms
supplies underground aquifers of a thickness of 50–100 m, (CDM) projects.
and can cause flooding problems. Lower aquifers are
50–80 m and sourced from underground water. Where water The government is concerned by climate change issues and
can drain naturally, channels and canals are dug to carry water considers climate change is a real threat to Vietnam being one
away from the mines. Where water sits below this natural of the most vulnerable countries. By participating in CDM,
drainage level, pumps are used. So during high rainfall a great Vietnam can seek additional investment and opportunities for
deal of pressure to pump water away from working areas technology transfer. In June 2003, the government designated
greatly hampers coal operations. the National Office for Climate Change and Ozone Protection
(NOCCOP), part of the International Cooperation Department
(ICD) of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment
13.2 Coal washeries (MONRE) as CDM National Authority or CNA. The CDM
National Executive and Consultative Board were established
The environmental performance of coal mines and in April 2003, composed of government officials from
preparation plants has been improved for operations such as MONRE and other Ministries.
dust suppression, water drainage, waste water treatment, land
restoration (UNESCAP, 2007). However, despite these well In August 2004, the Prime Minister signed the Decision No
intentioned efforts to improve side-effects of coal mining 153/2004/QD-TTg issuing Vietnam Agenda 21 in order to
facilities, a large problem still exists in a considerable develop the economy in a sustainable manner. According to
proportion of the industry. In 2009, the deputy director of the this document, the energy industry is one of the key industries
Vang Danh Coal Mining Company admitted that the company and also has the biggest impact on the environment due to
discharged untreated wastewater directly into a nearby stream coal mining activities, oil and gas exploitation on the seabed,

Environmental standards
and the release of waste from energy production and

consumption. The main environment policy for the energy
sector from the strategy is the following:
● strengthen the legal basis for production and business
activities, energy consumption and environmental
protection;
● support research and development, transfer and
application of energy systems that cause little impact to
the environment including new and renewable energy
sources. Priority should be given to developing
renewable energy sources through financial incentives,
other policies in the strategy for national energy
development;
● actively participate in international co-operative and
exchanging activities related to the UNDP framework
convention on climate change in 1992.

14 Electricity demand and generation trends
Economic growth is strong, with GDP growth throughout the electricity consumption was 598 kWh in 2006 (IEA, 2009).
1990s averaging 7.6%/y. Growth continues to exceed 7% With consumption at such a low level, the possibilities for
making it probably Asia’s second-fastest growing economy growth are immense in all sectors. Vietnam’s per capita
behind China. Between 1990 and 2006, the average growth electricity consumption is on par with The Philippines and
rate for electricity demand was an astonishing 14%/y, quite Indonesia, but considerably less than its neighbouring
out of proportion with the GDP growth. According to the economies China and Malaysia.
Asian Development Bank (ADB, 2009), power generation
reached 76 TWh in 2008, more than double that being Demand growth is expected to remain high, with per capita
generated in 2002.The Vietnamese now generate more electricity consumption expected to double from
electricity than Austria. 600 kWh/head in 2006 to 1300 kWh/head in 2012. Even by
2012, consumption per head will remain half that of China or
Sixteen years of high growth from all sectors of the economy Thailand. In 2008, EVN reported a continuation of electricity
appears to be just a beginning for the country’s power markets. demand growth over the long term to 2025 at some 11–12%/y.
In just ten years, Vietnam’s customer numbers have increased Demand will be partly met by imports, but domestic
from 2 million in 2995 to almost 10 million today. In 2006, generation will form most of the country’s supply and so is
sales of electricity were approximately 50 TWh, while the expected to grow in line with demand and economic growth.
country generated approximately 60.5 TWh. Demand
continued to grow, and by 2008, an estimated 76 TWh was
generated to meet 67–68 TWh of demand (calculated from 14.2 Sectoral demand for electricity
generation minus estimated losses of 11–12%).
Figure 18 shows the sectoral split for electricity demand in
2006. Industrial demand accounts for the largest proportion of
14.1 Prospects for growth demand, and will continue to be so in the future. As
mentioned earlier, residential demand will increase with rising
Per capita electricity demand is around 600 kWh/head rural electrification, but also in the urban metropolitan areas
(579 kWh in 2006), it still remains one of the lowest in Asia where 100% of households have access to electricity.
(see Figure 17). With increased urbanisation and improved Considering a vast amount of biomass is already used in the
living standards, growth in electricity demand is inevitable, residential sector, it is likely electricity will not replace a
however, whether a sustained growth of 14%/y is likely massive proportion of the biomass, but rather add to the
during a period of global economic turmoil in the few years energy consumption by providing increased lighting,
after 2008-09 is not certain, and is likely to be below this. refrigeration, and other appliances.
Growth in household appliance ownership has probably been
even more influential on demand because disposable incomes The sharp, steady increases in residential electricity demand
have risen from very low levels in the mid-1990s. Per capita follow both an increase in household access and addition of
Canada
USA
Germany
Malaysia
Brazil
China
Vietnam
Philippines
Indonesia
India
0 5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000
Electricity consumption, kWh/head
Figure 17 Per capita electricity consumption in 2006 (IEA, 2009)

Electricity demand and generation trends
agriculture / forestry 1%
commercial and Table 6 Electricity market projections between
public services 9% 2007 and 2025 (Du Son, 2008)
Official power development plan VI
2007 2010 2015 2020 2025
Sales, TWh 58.4 96.2 210 340 450
Generation, TWh 66.9 105.8 227 363 484
Peak demand, MW 11.5 18 38 60 79
Generating capacity,
industry 47%
13.1 25.7 50 78 100
MW
residential 42%
Government to rural electrification, and the definition and

transport 1%
systematic implementation of national plans as a matter of
priority, with public investment support to match local
Figure 18 Electricity demand in 2006 by end-user community funds.
(Total = 48.7 TWh)
loads other than the basic lighting load. With both increases in 14.3 Future trends in electricity
the urban population and the success in rural electrification
about 30 m new people were added as power users from 1995
demand
to 2004, representing some 37% of the total population. Vietnam is facing sharp increases in power sector investment
requirements. The original Fifth Power Master Development
Light industries are growing fast in Vietnam and include food Plan projected an increase in power generation averaging
and beverage processing, textiles, light chemicals, and light 13.4%/y during the period 2001-10, and power generation
consumer durable goods. These often tend to increase power actually grew by 15%/y during 1995-2005. EVN revised its
use per unit value added as development proceeds, due to development plans in 2003, and despite foreseeing shortfalls
increasing automation, packaging and (for food, beverages in capacity, the country still found itself ill prepared to cope
and textiles) increased use of cooling. Industrial electricity with a serious shortage in supply capacity in 2005, leading to
demand growth increased especially fast during the last few the forced large-scale load shedding.
years (for example 18.5%/y during 2001-04) and is expected
to continue to be a key demand driver (World Bank, 2007b). In the early 2000s, the growth rate in electricity demand was
averaging 12–17%/y. Whether an electricity demand growth
While urbanisation and industrial growth are major drivers, could drop to below 10% is not impossible, and when
rising electricity consumption is being driven partly by the compared with official statistics, it is probable. The
expansion in rural demand that is taking place as more government has been prone to underestimating demand
communes are connected to the national grid. At the end of growth which partly led to the slow development in
2006, 93% of rural households had access to electricity, generating capacity. If demand did indeed fall to 7–8%, it
compared with 51% in 1995. This figure is set to continue would enable the generating and transmission capacity to play
rising over the next few years, particularly following the catch-up. However, there is a real danger that demand
recent financial support provided by the World Bank for the outpaces generating capacity the way it has done so in the
Rural Energy II project, which aims to supply power to past (see Section 15.4). Recent base-case scenarios point to a
2.5 million households by upgrading the electricity network in slowdown in power demand growth to 11%/y between 2011
1200 communes in 30 provinces. The Bank has agreed to and 2015, followed by 9.1%/y during 2015 to 2020.
make $220 million credit available for the project, which
began in 2005 and will run until 2012. In addition, in While GDP growth is expected to rise by 8–9%/y during
mid-2008, the Bank approved $150 million in financing to 2006-15, updates to the outlook for economic growth in
upgrade rural energy infrastructure. Vietnam may well alter the projections. Reports suggest that
the target sales by the government are rather more optimistic,
Access to electricity in rural areas has increased dramatically and certainly not implausible. The Ministry of Industry
during 1996-2004, marking one of the most successful recent targeted an increase in power generation of 12.5%/y of public
rural electrification programme in the world. The number of grid generation, with sales increasing by 13–14%/y in 2009
rural households with access to electricity has increased from (PiA, 2009a). This drop in economic growth will probably
50.7% in 1996 to 88.0% in 2004. Rural household access impact industrial output and residential energy demand.
rates are expected to further increase during the next several
years, although achievement of access among the final 5% of Based on multiple linear regression analysis done by
rural households will not be easy. The success of Vietnam’s IEA CCC using GDP (in constant VND) and population
programme lies principally with the commitment of the forecasts (obtained from the IMF), there is some agreement

Electricity demand and generation trends
with other long-term forecasts published elsewhere. The

author’s analysis suggests that the growth in electricity
demand in 2009 might only be 7.6%/y, but then rising to
8.9%/y in 2010, and 10–11%/y in 2011-13. These rates are
considerably lower than past 12–17%/y actually experienced
in the 2000s. Even these predicted growth rates may be too
high. Some reports suggest that electricity demand may only
grow by 6–7%/y in 2009 (Binh Minh, 2009). IMF data show
GDP sustaining an 8.5% growth rate in 2007, in line with the
assumptions, the growth in real GDP dropped to 6% in 2008,
and then an estimated 5.5% in 2009. IMF projections suggest
that a growth rate of some 7–7.5%/y is likely between 2009
and 2013 and 8–9%/y after 2013.

15 Electricity supply in Vietnam
The Vietnamese electricity market is based on a single buyer sizeable project at 1200 MWe comprised of four 300 MWe
structure. This effectively means that whoever generates steam turbines. The whole operation is an IPP complex where
power, whether it be EVN or an IPP (foreign or Vietnamese EVN has the majority stake. Minority stakes are held by
owned) must sell all of its output to EVN. On-site industrial Vinacomin, the state coal company, and the Pha Lai
(auto) production clearly does not apply for the power that is Thermoelectric Power Company (PiA, 2009e), whose parent
used on the same site. Any power from an industrial site that company is EVN.
is delivered to the public grid must be sold to EVN.
Therefore, the supply of electricity is in the hands of a state EVN’s financial accounts are strictly separate from the
monopoly. Government budget. According to official reports, EVN
receives no subsidy for investment or its operations, with the
exception of funding for the resettlement of populations
15.1 Structure of the electricity during specific hydroelectric schemes. EVN has several
methods of raising finance. Most of the funds are raised
market – the monopoly of EVN under commercial terms, although concessional loans are
Electricité de Vietnam comprises a number of units which raised for the purposes of improving rural electrification as
have a controlling stake in power generation, transmission, well as DAF loans used for resettlement costs, which carry
sales and distribution. These units include the National Load interest rates that are charged at a 2–3% discount below
Dispatch Center, 14 power plants, four transmission commercial rates.
companies, and the Institute of Energy operating as dependent
accounting units under EVN. The independent accounting According to the World Bank (2007), EVN was able to
units are seven distribution power companies, four design and steadily maintain profitability throughout 2004, covering all
engineering companies, two power equipment manufacturing of its costs, including depreciation and financing costs, from
companies, and one electric telecommunication company. internally generated revenues. While raising finance is done
EVN owns and operates a bulk of the power generation, on a commercial basis, EVN’s generation and network
especially hydroelectric plants. EVN also owns shareholding development plans, and all major investment projects must be
stakes in a number of independent power plants (IPP) which approved by the Government. The Ministry of Industry is
include generators owned by other state-run corporations. responsible for executing bidding and contracting procedures
for large IPPs. State policy has increasingly encouraged
In 2000, IPP projects accounted for just under 9% of the total development of independent power generation by investors
generating capacity in the country. By 2007, this proportion outside the EVN system.
had grown to 22% of generating capacity. According to
IEA CCC estimates, based on proprietary information, 95%
of the IPP capacity is thermal generation. This means that 15.2 Power transmission network –
IPPs are an increasingly significant proportion of the overall
generation. Interestingly, IPP developments in Vietnam are
system losses remain high
occasionally owned by state-owned entities. For this reason, With power generation growing at a rate desperately trying to
the term IPP can be misleading in some instances. For catch up with the soaring demand, system losses remain high.
example the Ca Mau and Non Trach stations are both CCGT Losses occur across the entire power generation to end-user
with a combined capacity of 1800 MWe, and account for 40% network. The bulk of the losses occur in transmission and
of the IPP capacity in Vietnam. Both the stations are owned distribution. Losses can be estimated by calculating the
by the state oil company Petrovietnam. difference between sales (or final demand) and generation.
Petrovietnam operates some of the largest power stations in According to Du Son (2008), system losses in the mid-1990s
the country. The Ca Mau 1 and 2 plants are 1500 MWe in exceeded 20%. This was a phenomenal amount of power loss
total and were built using turbines and generators supplied by in the transmission and distribution grid. However, through
Siemens. The next largest IPPs include the build, own, and investment and expansion, EVN is reported to have cut
operate (BOT) project at the Phu My power complex which transmission and distribution losses down to 10.8% in 2006
was built in 2003-04. While EVN operates the bulk of the (EVN, 2008). Much of this could be attributed to the recent
capacity on the Ca Mau 2800 MWe power complex, 940 MW expansion from around 13,135 km of power lines in the year
is owned and operated by the Phu My Power Company 2000, to 20,000 km in 2006. While the medium (220 kV) and
(460 MWe) and the Mekong Power company (480 MWe). The low voltage (110 kV) grid has experienced significant growth
entire complex consists of gas-fired plants, many of them in in kilometres laid (up to 50% increase), the high voltage grid
combined cycle. (500 kV) has doubled.
The Quang Ninh Thermoelectric Power Company is a joint Although losses are high, it is not clear whether the estimate
stock company owned by a pool of investors, but appears to of losses at 10.8% is entirely accurate, and could be
remain in the ownership of the state. The coal-fired station is underestimated. Using generation and sales data from Du Son
located at Ha Long in the north east of Vietnam. The plant is a (2008) gives a simple percentage difference of 12.6%.

Electricity supply in Vietnam
However, the Ministry of Industry targeted sales of public problems in certain regions if there was a shortage of hydro or
grid electricity of 74.9 TWh in 2009, at the same time as fuel for that region.
generating 83.3 TWh, which would imply a loss factor of
10% (PiA, 2009a). Regardless of the accuracy, losses are high While this simplistic graphic illustrates some of the fragility
but improving and must continue a path of loss minimisation in the network system, EVN plans to add considerably more
in future years. capacity with cross-border connections with neighbouring
Laos, Cambodia, and China. The governments of Vietnam and
The purpose of building new power stations to meet growing Laos PDR signed an Agreement on energy co-operation.
demand will be continually countered by high losses, and will Under this accord, Vietnam will import 1600–2000 MWe of
prove costly for EVN over the long term. The Government’s electricity from Laos by 2020 (Du Son, 2008; APEC, 2009).
Sixth Master Plan shows how EVN aims to bolster the The governments of Vietnam and Cambodia have also signed
network system by trebling the length of the transmission an agreement on energy co-operation, through which Vietnam
network between 2007 and 2025. More crucially, EVN aims will supply 80–200 MWe of electricity to Cambodia via a
to treble the capacity by 2015, and increase it sevenfold by 230 kV transmission line, which could expand further by
2025 (on 2007 capacity). Press reports suggested that 2019. In the future, Cambodian hydro developments may also
Vietnam’s power shortages will not be dealt with without a participate in the regional electricity market, Vietnam will
seemingly unfeasible development programme. EVN stated conversely buy electricity from Cambodia. Vietnam joined
that power shortages could be around 7–63 TWh. The wide The Inter-Governmental Agreement on Regional Power Trade
range covers any number of growth scenarios for demand. By in the Greater Mekong Sub-Region (GMS), which was signed
2020, the shortfall could be 115–225 TWh. The problems by six GMS countries in November 2002.
arising from power blackouts are discussed in Section 15.4.
At present, Vietnam supplies electricity to Laos and
In Vietnam, there are substantial regional differences in the Cambodia by medium voltage lines at some places in
availability of natural energy resources, with particular bordering provinces and buys electricity from China by
reference to hydro, coal, and natural gas for power generation. 110 kV lines. In 2006, Vietnam imported nearly 400 GWh
The North has an excess of hydro and coal-fired power from China. Power shortages in Vietnam may force EVN to
resources, and power surplus is now being transported to the seek more electricity from China over the next few years. To
Centre and the South over a high-voltage transmission line at provide access to Chinese power, EVN began to build two
500 kV with a length of about 1500 km. 220 kV transmission lines in early-2005 – the Ha Khau
(China) to Viet Tri (Vietnam) line and the Van Son (China) to
This transmission line effectively interconnects the electric Soc Son (Vietnam) line. These lines were completed step by
systems of the three regions of the country. The level of step in 2008. With a total transmission capacity of more than
electrification has been expanded step by step not only in 500 MWe, the lines will meet a part of the rising demand for
urban but also in rural and to some extent in mountainous and electricity in coming years.
highland areas.
Figure 19 shows the major 500 kV high voltage line that acts 15.3 Local power distribution
like the backbone of the north-south grid. The central region
is served largely by hydroelectricity while the north is served The local distribution network is controlled by EVN
by coal-fired power while the south is rich in gas-fired power. subsidiaries, which includes seven regional power companies
Clearly the metropolitan region and surrounding provinces (PCs) that are each in charge of power transmission and
around the cities of Hanoi (north) and Ho Chi Min (south) are distribution from 110 kV downwards. These companies are in
the key focal points for demand from industry and effect the ‘distribution companies’ which take power from the
urbanisation. What is clear from the representation is how a high transmission grids to the end-user. These companies will
disruption in the transmission line would cause major be responsible for metering and billing.
north coal
The three largest PCs are named PC1 (northern Vietnam),
hydro
PC2 (southern Vietnam), and PC3 (central Vietnam) and cover
the major regions of the country; the four remaining
distribution companies cover the metropolitan areas of Hanoi,
Ho Chi Minh City, Hai Phong and Dong Nai. The PCs each
maintain separate financial accounts, although the companies
centre hydro 500 kV line are consolidated within EVN’s overall accounts. In most rural
areas, local communities own and operate the low-voltage
electricity distribution systems. The basic approach adopted
for rural electrification in Vietnam has been for EVN’s PCs to
develop the medium-voltage network, and for local
communities to develop the low-voltage system (although
south hydro gas
EVN has undertaken this role for about one-fifth of Vietnam’s
communes).
Figure 19 Regional character of Vietnam’s Power
System (Ritschel and Schiffer, 2008) Provincial People’s Committees oversee rural electrification

Electricity supply in Vietnam
in their provinces, and provide substantial financial support lamps (CFL) programme for the residential sector and
for the local share of investment. Until 2004, local power embarked on a time-of-use metering programme for the
distribution was handled by informal Commune Electricity industrial sector. Both of these programmes have helped
Groups or other informal entities in about two-thirds of reduce about 150 MW peak load demand. EVN plans to
Vietnam’s electrified communes. According to Government expand the time-of-use programme for the residential sector.
regulations, however, all of these entities are now required to
convert to formal legal entities, such as co-operatives or Typical peak generators include diesel generators, which may
joint-stock companies. come in the form of turbines, internal combustion engines, or
less commonly boilers. Other useful contributors to peak load
will be natural gas-fired turbines, but both oil and gas
15.4 Blackouts – the recurring theme generators can be extremely costly to operate on a per kWh
output basis especially when oil prices are high.
in developing Asia
The Vietnam power system is prone to disruption: with The Vietnamese government has responded to the surging
increasing power demand, seemingly small breakdowns and demand growth and blackouts by approving 48,000 MWe of
failure can cause considerable disruptions. In 2006, Fon Anne generating capacity between 2007 and 2015, equivalent to
Lee (2006) published some representative events that were 400% of the capacity that was operating 2006 (Dapice, 2008).
provided by the Vietnamese News Agency that illustrate the Some 18,000 MWe of thermal power plants (coal and gas) are
problems faced in Vietnam. Power shortages resulted from planned for commissioning between 2009 and 2016, and
rapidly rising peak demand, while supply disruptions ranged these new plant additions will also address the low reserve
from low hydro availability, breakdowns of gas- and coal- margin in the power system. In the two years between 2010
fired plants, and limited transmission capacity to cope with and 2012, at least 3000 MWe of new coal-fired power
the rising demand. Interestingly, thermal power stations are capacity is scheduled to be commissioned in northern and
susceptible to excessive heat, possibly linked to the low central Vietnam.
availability of water supplies, which is intrinsically linked
with the low hydro availability. Clearly, while flooding is a
problem in some lowland parts of Vietnam, drought causes
serious problems elsewhere.
While the longer-term projections for power generation have

a wide range (see Section 16.5), it suggests there is great
uncertainty in the future demand needs of the country, while
the future supply will be somewhat constrained by
developments in more transmission and generating capacity.
One of the most important features of Vietnam’s energy

market is how the economy suffers from periodic blackouts,
especially in the dry season when hydroelectric power is in a
lull. This is not an uncommon feature of electricity in many
developing countries with inadequate capacity. Dapice (2008)
wrote that one of the reasons that blackouts are frequent in
Vietnam is the high ratio between peak demand and off-peak
demand. Maximum demand can be 11,500 MWe, while off
peak demand can drop to 6800 MWe. Such a massive swing
in demand requires considerable amounts of idle peak
capacity as well as flexible mid-merit capacity that the
country currently lacks.
The major contributors to the increase in peak loads and

energy consumption are various end-users (motors, process
loads, lighting, etc) in large industrial and commercial
customers, and lighting loads in the residential and small
commercial customers.
Hydroelectric power in 2006 accounted for more than 30% of

capacity and more than 40% of generation. Reservoir capacity
is limited in Vietnam, and current facilities can supply power
for up to a week under normal conditions. Dry seasons lead to
limited hydro availability in succeeding months and create
major shortages in the availability of electricity.
EVN has undertaken an efficient compact fluorescent light

16 Power generating capacity in Vietnam
Figure 20 is a representative despatch curve of the Vietnamese coal 17%
generating capacity as of 2008 (based on the average
percentage utilisation for the period 2000-07). Historically, hydro 42%
coal-fired power has provided a considerable amount of
electricity, but as can be seen from Figure 20, Vietnam’s oil 4%
electricity supply has been dominated by two main forms of
generation, hydroelectricity and oil products.
In reality, the despatch of power stations is not carried out in

such discrete blocks. On a day-to-day basis, the despatch
curve is smooth and generation for individual station units is
spread across the curve. Station despatch changes hourly as
well as annually depending on the availability of the plant and
the cost of generation. Nevertheless, the illustration provides a gas 37%
useful simplified picture of the way a fleet of stations operate
over a typical year.
Figure 21 Total generation in 2006, split by
The vertical axis indicates the amount of generating capacity generating source (IEA, 2009)
the country had operating in 2006-07, and the horizontal axis
shows the percentage of the year for which these fleets of which is about half based on fuel oil and half on gasoil. This
power stations operated, otherwise referred to as utilisation is peaking capacity, and may or may not expand as a
(100% being 365 days or 8760 hours). The area of each block proportion of total generation.
indicates the amount of power generated in GWh (convert %
utilisation to hours by multiplying by 87.6), which is also While these utilisation figures fluctuate, it is worth explaining
represented by the pie chart in Figure 21 (for the year 2006). some of the dangers of drawing immediate conclusions from
such an analysis. In 2007, hydroelectricity achieved a
In 2008, the main forms of generation were unsurprisingly utilisation of 56%, a little over the average shown in the
hydroelectricity (5.4 GWe) and gas CCGT (5.6 GWe), which figure, and significantly more than any of the preceding seven
according to IEA CCC estimates accounted for more than years. So, 2007 itself may be unrepresentative and therefore it
90% of the gas generating capacity, the rest being single cycle may be more logical to average utilisation data over a longer
gas turbines, internal combustion engines or boilers whose period to encompass hydrological variability when drought
primary fuel is likely to be oil, but are capable of firing gas. periods may have occurred also.
Coal generating capacity was 2 GWe, but is destined to
expand rapidly. Oil-fired generation is approximately1 GWe, For thermal generation, the average utilisation has been
16
imports
14
oil
Generating capacity, GWe
12
hydropower
10
CCGT (including oil/gas GT)

4
2
coal
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100
Utilisation, %
Figure 20 Despatch curve for power station fleet in Vietnam (author’s estimates)

Power generating capacity in Vietnam
around 55–67% for gas GT and coal, with utilisation rates 2000. It took almost 20 years to build 800 MWe of coal-fired
rising gradually over the years. These utilisation rates may capacity. Some 1.2 GWe was built between 2001 and 2006
well be underestimating the true potential for fossil-fulled with the construction of Pha Lai 2 and Uong Bi under EVN,
generation in Vietnam in the future. and a number of plants owned by Vinacomin, Formosa, and
Ha Bac Nitrogen Fertilizer.
In the period 2000-07, EVN’s thermal capacity more than
doubled for both coal- and gas-fired power. IPP developments Some of the early power stations were built by Lilama, now
increased eightfold, more than 95% of which was thermal an EVN subsidiary that specialises in construction. In the
generation (mainly gas), and only a small proportion was past, foreign firms such as Siemens and Fuji have been
hydro or renewables. This massive rate of development can involved in power projects as far back as the 1980s when they
affect performance statistics for power stations for the supplied equipment for a small IPP Bai Bang Mill.
following reason. When new plants are being commissioned
part of the way through the year, testing and final
commissioning can take weeks. If the capacity comes on line 16.2 Coal – the preferred method of
in the latter half of the year, its average annual utilisation will
therefore be very low. For this reason, year-on-year utilisation
reliable power generation
of thermal plants may seem low as each year brings on new As mentioned throughout the report, developments in power
capacity, often large scale. Therefore, the average thermal projects have shown a major shift away from hydroelectricity
utilisation of 55–67% for the CCGT and coal stations may towards thermal generation. Figure 22 illustrates the capacity
underestimate that achieved by modern existing stations that developments that occurred in the period 2008 to the first half
have been running for a year or more. This relatively low of 2009. There is a clear shift towards coal-fired
utilisation may continue for some years as power developments, an indication of the way power generation will
developments continue in large incremental steps. move forward in future years.
The Platt’s Power Tracker monitors the status of major power

16.1 Existing coal-fired capacity projects, however, some may be omitted due to the fast pace
of change that occurs in the power industry in developing
Table 7 lists all the coal-fired power plants that were in countries. Nevertheless, these Tracker projects are likely to
operation in 2007 in chronological order. The list comprises form a larger proportion of the country’s generating fleet. In
of nine power plants, although Uong Bi 7 is separated from the period 2008 to the first half of 2009, Vietnam
the remaining units as it was built 30 years after the remainder commissioned 5 GWe of new capacity, much of which was
of the site. Uong Bi 5–7 (410 MWe), Pha Lai 1 & 2 gas-fired (2.7 GWe) but also included coal-fired (1.4 GWe),
(1040 MWe), and Ninh Binh (220 MWe) are owned by EVN and hydroelectric (1.3 GWe) projects. At the same time, the
subsidiaries. This leaves three smaller power stations ranging total plant capacity that was still under construction amounted
from 12 to 126 MWe amounting to 370 MWe that are to 9 GWe. Nearly all of this 9 GWe was coal-fired and due to
operated by IPPs. IPPs provide around 18% of the total come online during the period 2010-13.
coal-fired capacity. Na Duong (100 MWe) and Cao Ngan
(100 MWe) are still owned by the state via Vinacomin and so Interestingly, the plants that were in various stages of
are independent of EVN, but not privately owned. planning were also largely made up of coal-fired capacity.
Early stages of planning might include plants with local or
Coal-fired power development in Vietnam was slow before central government approval, or been announced, or where
Table 7 List of existing coal-fired power stations, 2007
Plant name Owner or operator MWe Fuel Date of commissioning
Uong Bi 5 & 6 Uong Bi Thermal Power Co 110 Anthracite 1965 & 1974
Ninh Binh Ninh Binh Power Co 220 Anthracite 1974-76
Pha Lai-1 Pha Lai Thermal Power JSC 440 Anthracite 1983-1987
Bai Bang Mill Bai Bang Paper Co 28 Anthracite 1982
Pha Lai-2 Pha Lai Thermal Power JSC 600 Anthracite 2001
Na Duong Vinacomin 100 Lignite 2004
Nhon Trach Formosa Hung Nghiep Formosa 126 Anthracite 2004
Cao Ngan Vinacomin 100 Anthracite 2006
Uong Bi 7 Uong Bi Thermal Power Co 300 Anthracite 2006

30
nuclear
Petrovietnam, the state-owned oil and gas company.
wind
25 hydro 16.3 The Sixth Power Development
gas Plan – 15 GWe of new capacity
20 coal by 2013
Capacity, GWe
The development programme for power capacity gave rise to

15
a 15,000 MWe programme planned for commissioning in
2009-16. The high growth rates of demand coupled with the
disproportionate reliance on hydroelectricity in the past has
10 left Vietnam with little or no reserves during annual dry
seasons. The Sixth Power Development Plan was approved in
2007 and recognised the need to tackle the system imbalances
5 and seasonal shortfall from hydroelectric energy by building
more thermal capacity. Hydropower is still part of the plan,
especially from cross border links with Vietnam-financed
0
hydro schemes in neighbouring countries such as Cambodia
operational under advanced early
construction planning planning
and Laos. The 15,000 MWe programme originally consisted
stage stage of some 13 large-scale projects, with some small-scale
projects included also, although more than 13 projects of
Figure 22 Platt’s Power Station Tracker – power varying scale are either in operation or are under construction.
development status in 2008-09
A number of large-scale thermal projects have been
partners in the development are yet to be chosen. Plants that commissioned since 2008-09, not least Ca Mau (2 x 750 MWe)
are considered to be in the advanced planning stages are and Nhon Trach (1200 MWe) gas-fired stations. The largest
those where contracts for construction have been awarded; projects are however coal-fired and these include Quang Ninh
where debt or investor finance has been secured; or where a (1200 MWe) which was commissioned during 2009-10.
power purchase agreement has been signed. While there is Projects under construction include the 1200 MWe Vung Ang
significant interest in coal-fired projects, the credit crisis that coal-fired station, Thai Bin (1800 MWe), and the most
is afflicting the global economy may impact capital intensive interesting thermal power project of all, the Long Phu plant,
projects such as coal plants. Many of these projects may yet also known as Soc Trang. Long Phu is earmarked to be a
be deferred or cancelled altogether, but there is no evidence of 4400 MWe station and will be a supercritical design capable of
this yet. achieving efficiencies of 45% for some if not all of its units.
The plant is located in the south of Vietnam and so the distance
Table 8 lists all the major stations that were listed in the Platt’s from the northern coal fields will mean the project could rely
Power Station Tracker for the period 2008 for Vietnam. The list more on imported coal as well as coal shipped by sea from the
provides plant specific details on developers, capacities, and the Quang Ninh ports. The project is being partly funded by the
status as of this period. The list was constructed using the Asian Development Bank (ADB, 2008c).
Platt’s Power in Asia journal in which the Tracker is published
regularly. Other sources for power station projects were used to Since mid-2008, there has been a flurry of restructuring in the
supplement the Platt’s list wherever possible. While some of power development programme and it is surprising that many
the details may be subject to change, particularly for the plants of the projects have not been deferred or cancelled altogether,
in the planning stage, the most accurate information was however, the programme seems to be forging ahead.
provided at the time of preparing the table. According to PiA (2009c) EVN announced it would be unable
to finance the development plan in accordance to the time
Some of the difficulties of identifying power plants is that schedule. A number of other corporations swiftly stepped in,
they may be known by location, typically the province, but one notable corporation being Petrovietnam, or PV Power.
also after the local town, or project developer. Where
duplication of projects was identified, they were omitted. Plans for the 2400 MW Quang Binh (also known as Quang
Where actual operating capacities differed from design Trach) were jeopardised when EVN announced the finance
capacities, the operating capacities were shown. problem, but Petrovietnam (PV) Power rescued the project.
Another project advanced as a result of the Malaysian power
The larger coal projects that were under construction were investor Janakuasa Sdn Bhd who agreed to build the Duyen
being built by state-run firms; for example, Lilama Corp is the Hai-2 plant on an IPP basis. EVN remains the single buyer of
major construction and heavy manufacturing firm that is state- electricity from all thermal IPPs, and so Janakuasa aimed to
owned under EVN and it is responsible for the building of secure a 30-year PPA with EVN in order to secure the future
many of the country’s largest power stations, from hydro of the project. EVN still remains the single buyer of
plants to thermal stations. Gas turbines may still be provided electricity from the thermal IPPs, and so Janakuasa had hoped
by foreign firms such as Siemens, but Lilama are invariably to sign a 30-year PPA with EVN in order to secure the future
responsible for the construction at a plant level. The other of the project. While EVN’s involvement in the project
major power developer seen is PV Power. This is the name of development was withdrawn for a number of these thermal

Table 8 Platt’s Power Tracker – major power project developments 2008-09
Project name Developer Capacity, MWe Fuel Status 2
Son Dong Vinacomin 220 coal Operation imminent

Quang Ninh-1 EVN/Vinacomin/Lilama 1200 coal Initial operation
Ca Mau-2 Petrovietnam Power 750 gas Commercial operation
Ca Mau-2 PV Power 750 gas Operation
Nhon Trach-1 Petrovietnam 750 gas J-Power buys equity
Nhon Trach-1 PV Power 450 gas Commercial operation
Dai Ninh EVN 300 hydro Commercial operation
A Vuong EVN 210 hydro Initial operation
Pleikrong-1 EVN 50 hydro Operation
Tuyen Quang-3 EVN 114 hydro Operation
Buon Kuop EVN 280 hydro Operation begun
Binh Dien BDHPC 44 hydro Commercial operation
Pleikrong EVN 100 hydro Commercial operation
Song Ba Ha EVN 220 hydro Commercial operation
O Mon-1/1 EVN 330 oil/gas Initial operation
Subtotal 5768
Operation/construction
Project name Developer Capacity Fuel
status
Nong Son Nong Son Coal 30 coal Construction begun
Uong Bi 2/2 EVN 316 coal Construction begun
Vung Ang Lilama 1200 coal Construction begun
Long Phu also called Soc Trang 1,2, & 3 PV Power 4400 coal Construction begun
Thai Binh 1 and 2 EVN/PV Power 1800 coal Construction begun
Cam Pha 1 & 2 Vinacomin 660 coal Construction begun
Hai Phong Hai Phong thermal power 600 coal Construction begun
Dong Nai-2 Dong Nai PC 70 hydro Construction begun
Nam Pung Nam Pung Hydro 9 hydro Construction begun
Son La Visaween Hydro 27 hydro Construction begun
Serepok-4 Dai Hai Power 80 hydro Construction begun
Nam Chien-2 Northwest Power 36 hydro Tunnel completed
A Luoi EVN 170 hydro River damming started
Binh Thuan EVN Renewable 30 wind Equipment delivered
Subtotal 9428
projects, it seems that from the list, hydroelectric stations 15 GWe of capacity needed under the Sixth Power
remain firmly within the hands of EVN. Out of all the Development Plan. Although the list is not completely
planned developments, EVN has a direct interest in just two comprehensive, most of the known projects are included. The
projects, both at the Vinh Tan power complex. The first was plant capacities and specification may change in the light of
reported to be a consortium with Oneenergy (a joint venture the economic circumstances of funding bodies and
between Hong Kong CPL Group and Japan’s Mitsubishi corporations around the world.
Corp). The second Vinh Tan project on the same complex is
being planned by EVN in a consortium with China Southern. A great deal of assistance has been sought to finance this
development plan. Amongst a number of non-EVN
A total of 5.8 GWe was commissioned, while 9.4 GWe was corporations, international finance organisations such as the
under construction. Other smaller power projects may be in ADB, Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC),
development but not included in the list. A total of 15.2 GWe World Bank, and the Swedish International Development
of power capacity will therefore be commissioned between Cooperation Agency (SIDA) have all contributed to financing
2008 and 2015. This is more or less consistent with the the developments.

Table 9 Major coal power developments as of 2008-09
Capacity, Status of project as

Project name Developer Fuel Expected start date
Mwe of mid-2009
Son Dong Vinacomin 220 coal Operation imminent 2009
Quang Ninh-1 EVN/Vinacomin/Lilama 1200 coal Initial operation 2009-2010
Sub total of newly commissioned plants 1420
Cam Pha 1 & 2 Vinacomin 660 coal Construction begun first unit 2009; second unit 2010
Nong Son Nong Son Coal 30 coal Construction begun 2009
Uong Bi 2/2 EVN 316 coal Construction begun 2009
Hai Phong Hai Phong thermal power 600 coal Under construction 2010
Vung Ang Lilama 1200 coal Construction begun first unit 2011- final unit 2012
Long Phu also called
PV Power 4400 coal Initial construction 2013
Soc Trang 1,2, & 3
Thai Binh 1 and 2 EVN/PV Power 1800 coal Initial construction first unit 2013; final unit 2015
Subtotal of plants due online by 2015 9006
Ly Son Vinacomin 5 coal Project announced 2011
Phu Quoc Vinacomin 100 coal Project announced 2011
4200–
Kien Luong Tan Tao Group coal Investors sought 2013-17
5200
Vinh Tan OneEnergy/EVN 2000 coal MOU signed 2014
Duyen Hai-2 Janakuasa 1200 coal Investor selected 2015
Quang Binh or Quang
PV Power 2400 coal Project announced 2015
Trach Project
Quang Ngai Saigon-Dung Quat Power 2400 coal Project announced 2015-19
Duyen Hai - 3.1 & 3.2 EVN to award contract 3200 coal announced
Van Phong Posco/Vinashin 1000 coal Joint venture agreed NA
Viet-Trung
Khanh Hoa 100 coal Project announced NA
Power/Vinacomin
Vinh Tan China Southern/EVN 1200 coal FSA agreed
Subtotal of planned projects 17705
While foreign institutions are readily providing funds, foreign

corporations such as equipment manufacturers and power 16.4 The advent of developing coal
consultants are eager to get the business of building stations in
Vietnam. While Lilama, the EVN subsidiary, is a major
import projects
recipient of construction projects, Chinese corporations such While there is greater ongoing upgrading of some of the more
as the Wuhan Kaidi Electric Power company have been promising mines in Quang Ninh, the potential for new coal
awarded sizeable contracts of $430 million (out of a plant reserves in the Red River Delta region, the Kien Luong
budget of $530 million). UK firms such as Mott Macdonald project, takes a different approach and could provide Vietnam
have benefited from winning consultancy contracts for the with a more diverse source of coal. The project is some
Song Bung 4 hydro project. 300 km outside of Ho Chi Minh City in south Vietnam and
costs $2.5 billion. Within the project are a number of
The World Bank has provided loans for upgrading sub-projects which not only include a major power centre, but
transmission and distribution, rural energy projects and also two coal and cargo ports to be built at Nam Du as well as at
assisting EVN in hydropower developments. Coal capacity Kien Luong (PiA, 2008d). Coal supplies will be imported
developments due for commissioning between 2008 and 2015 from Australia, Indonesia and Russia. If it is completed, some
accounted for more than 10 GWe of capacity. This is 3 Mt/y of imported coal could supply Vietnam’s largest
equivalent to two thirds of the 15 GWe development coal-fired station if (or when) the full 5200 MWe is
programme. Interestingly, there is an additional 19 GWe of commissioned. A number of foreign firms have shown interest
plants that are in the planning stage (see Table 9). If these in this major power and coal supply project, including Sojitz
projects proceed successfully, a further 12 GWe of coal-fired Corp (Japan), Kyushu Electric Corp (Japan), and International
capacity could have their first units operating before 2015, Power (UK).
and completion by 2019.

The Kien Luong port could also provide a route for other The more recent projections have been increasingly
future developments. Australian coal mining company optimistic particularly the long-term growth trends presented
Ensham has expressed interest in a 3600 MWe station that by Van Huong (2008) and Le Son (2008). An estimated
could use imported coal at the Binh An project, and investors 430–480 TWh of electricity may be required by 2025. These
are being sought. The proposed ports at Nam Du and Kien projections assume that the growth in demand for power
Luong could be capable of importing 10 Mt/y of coal. Other continues at levels of 11–12%/y. Surprisingly, the expected
plants that could be importing coal include the 2400 MW downturn in demand for electricity in 2009 may mean that
Quang Binh (or Quang Trach) project and the 2400 MWe the projections may need to be recalibrated to a lower 2009
Quang Ngai plant, both possibly due online after 2015. level to account for the slower growth. Consequently, the
actual historical trend seems to be following a plot
The Nghi Son 1 coal-fired plant is in the advanced planning represented by Hoang Luong (2006). However, as
stages, and together with another planned Nghi Son 2 plant mentioned elsewhere in this report, the government has been
could be operating in the Nghi Son Economic Zone located in wrong-footed by underestimating electricity demand in the
Thanh Hoa Province on the coast of Vietnam some 40 km past, and so perhaps Hoang Luong (2006) would be
north of the town Vinh. The plants are part of a larger port and considered too low, albeit appearing to be a better trend line
industrial development programme. The harbour and coal than the other base case projections.
receiving jetty is being developed at Nghi Son, where coal for
Nghi Son1 will be barged from Vietnamese ports from the For comparison, a generating output of 430–480 TWh
north, while that for Nghi Son 2 will come from imported expected in 2025 is equivalent to one tenth of that produced
foreign sources. Nghi Son 1 is due by 2011, while Nghi Son 2 by the USA in 2006 (4300 TWh), or 80% of all the power
remains tentative and could be online in 2013/14. Coal generated in Africa (590 TWh in 2006); Vietnam’s power
imports of some 4 Mt/y are expected. generating ambitions are not small.
With such a dynamic economy like Vietnam, it is almost

16.5 Projections for power impossible to obtain an accurate forecast. One way of
determining the growth rate is to analyse the building
generation programme of power generation, and obtain a plausible
It has already been established that Vietnam plans to build projection for the amount of power that could be delivered by
15,000 MWe of new capacity between 2008 and 2015-16. The Vietnam’s power stations in 2015 and estimating future build
question arises whether this be enough new power capacity to rates thereafter.
serve the needs of Vietnam’s booming economy? Figure 23
illustrates some past electricity supply projections that have Figure 25 illustrates the potential development in power
been presented by EVN between 2006 and 2008. In almost all capacity in Vietnam as estimated by the author based on the
cases, the growth projections contain an element for imports, published Platt’s Power Station Tracker, and other media
but forecast electricity imports rarely contribute much more sources to determine new projects. The estimated capacity
than 8% of the overall supply, and so these projections level for 2009 is around 17 GWe: this could more than double
assume that more than 92% of the supply will be met by to 40 GWe by 2015 with the addition of more than 20 GWe of
domestically generated means. new capacity by 2015.
500 Hoang Luong 2006 Roughly 60% of the 23 GWe of new capacity between 2009
and 2015 is already under construction and due for
Van Houng 2008 commissioning by 2015 (see Figure 25). These plants are
Ding Trung 2007 therefore committed, and unless there is a catastrophic
400 collapse in finance, these plants are likely to go ahead, albeit
Le Son 2008
with possible delays. The remaining 40% of the capacity
Actual supply growth between 2009 and 2015 are plants that are in various
Generation, TWh
300 stages of planning, either at a more advanced stage of finance,

or a stage where investors or developers are being sought.
200 16.6 Reserve margin in crisis

The problem of supply shortages for electricity has been
100
discussed; this section looks specifically at the future power
commissioning trends and their possible contribution to the
country’s power reserves margin. Figure 25 illustrates the
possible trend in peak demand following the same trajectory
0 as Hoang Luong (2006) stated earlier, which sets growth
1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 between 2005 and 2025 at 8%/y (compared with other
estimates of 11%/y). The reason for following this lower trend
Figure 23 Base case electricity supply projections is to demonstrate the pressures Vietnam’s power system could
(including imports), TWh (various sources) be under even with modest growth in demand.

35
coal - planned
gas and oil CCGT - planned

30
nuclear - planned
hydro - planned
25
coal - under construction
gas and oil CCGT - under construction

Capacity, GWe
20
hydro - under construction
15
10
0
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2020 2025
Figure 24 Potential new generating capacity build, 2009-25 (author’s estimates)
60
hydroelectricity
nuclear
50
coal (including BFG and coal slurry)
gas and oil CCGT

Total generating capacity, GWe
40 gas and oil GT / boiler / IC
oil (boiler / IC)
peak demand MW (author estimate)

30
20
10
0
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2020 2025
Figure 25 Power generating capacity trends in Vietnam, 2000-25 (author’s estimates)
As mentioned earlier Dapice (2008) points out that Vietnam While there has been discussion on transmission losses
experiences a massive swing in demand within a day from as running at high levels, at worst 20% in past years, but closer
much as 11.5 GWe in peak periods, to just 6.8 GWe during to 10% today, less is discussed regarding capacity reserve
off-peak periods. EVN therefore has a mammoth task in margin. The reserve margin (RM) is expressed as a percentage
co-ordinating power station output with demand at any using the a simple calculation:
moment in the day. Choosing the right technology to meet this
is therefore a key criterion, and is the reasons why coal-fired RM = [Peak demand (MWe) – Max avail. Capacity(MWe)]
power is not only preferred, but necessary. ÷ Max avail. capacity (MWe)

This calculation however is made more complex by the form a significant proportion of the country’s future
dynamic nature of power demand and supply which can alter electricity output.
for a multitude of reasons along the power supply chain, and
which varies within different periods of time ranging from While these plans seem ambitious, Vietnam’s desire to foster
one hour to several weeks. international relations remains positive, and makes nuclear
power a real possibility. Vietnam signed the South East Asian
Assuming a simple annual RM calculation, in 2007 peak Nuclear Weapon Free Zone Treaty in 1996 and several
demand was 11.5 GWe, while total capacity was 12.3 GWe. agreements for peaceful use of nuclear with India, Korea,
While at first glance this would suggest a capacity margin of China, Argentine, and Russia. Japan and France have closely
+6.7%, which is low, the reality is different. The 12.3 GWe co-operated with Vietnam, and recently co-operation with the
capacity included thermal and hydroelectric plants. However, USA has been established. The nuclear ambitions of the
since hydroelectric plants have been averaging a utilisation of future could be as significant as the coal-fired plans for the
around 50% (see Figure 20), the available capacity for period 2009-15.
hydroelectric plants should perhaps be much lower while,
theoretically, thermal plants are assumed to be fully available
(with some planned downtime for maintenance). Assuming
only 50% of the hydro capacity is available (based on the
average utilisation of hydro plants since 2000), available
power capacity drops to 9.9 GWe, although it is possible that
reservoir hydro plants can still provide 100% peak capacity if
the water levels permit.
Nevertheless, using the conservative assumption that 50% of

the hydro is available for providing peak supplies, the reserve
margin of Vietnam in 2007 drops from +6.7% to –5.7%. This
is illustrated in Figure 25 by the orange line, which represents
the trend in peak demand. Peak demand in 2007 is just below
the capacity level of thermal (coal, gas, and oil) and
hydrogeneration. If only half the hydro capacity was
available, Vietnam barely has enough available capacity to
meet the peak demand in this year. This is visible in almost all
other years thereafter until 2013.
Provided the current construction programme goes ahead with

little delay (as in Figure 24), and the additional planned
capacity comes online also, Vietnam may still suffer from
reserve margin problems for some years. However, the large
coal-fired plants due to come online around 2013 and planned
thereafter will ease the country into a state of reserve margin
stability provided demand does not follow a higher trajectory.
More of the station capacity will be thermally based, with less
hydroelectricity. Other renewable energies will be small, and
play little part in the generating mix.
By 2020, the growth in capacity is considerably more

speculative and even introduces Vietnam’s first nuclear station
if it is successfully built after 2020 (see Figure 24). Quite
unlike countries like North Korea and Iran, Vietnam has
actively sought international co-operation, which has been
ongoing since the 1980s. Within this period, the International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) based in Geneva helped
upgrade and restore a 500 kWe research reactor. Since then,
Japan, South Korea and Canada have assisted Vietnam in
studying the feasibility of running a large civilian reactor.
Since 2006, moves to develop a power station were proposed
by the government, and by September 2008, a National
Committee was set to appraise the proposal for a named plant,
the Nunh Thuan nuclear station. It is envisaged that the
station will be 4000 MWe, the first unit to be commercially
operating in 2020, the remaining units to come online in
2021-24. Further plans to develop 10–20 GWe by 2030 and
2040 respectively are being envisaged such that nuclear could

17 The impact of future power generation on coal demand
Given the expected growth in power generating capacity of few or no additions to the gas-fired stations due to the
coal-fired plants, growth in all forms of power generation is current status of plants as of mid-2009;
also likely to be substantial. The previous chapter has shown ● one of the most important considerations is the utilisation
that even if demand grows at a modest rate of 8%/y, the current of new plants. There is around 5 GWe of new capacity
plans for power station construction will only alleviate reserve with published planned output data in TWh. Based on
margin shortages by around 2014, and then the power shortage published TWh generation, it is straightforward to infer
problems may worsen again by 2020. At higher growth rates of the plant utilisation of these plants. Consequently, these
demand, some 11%/y and higher, the country could suffer plants are expected to operate in the range 60–79% of the
greatly from power shortages indefinitely without the year. As a fleet, they could run for a weighted average of
substantial build programme that is already planned. Assuming 69% of the year;
a successful build programme over the next 15–20 years,
diurnal peak demand may still suffer, even if enough capacity is Figure 26 is based on both the successful scheduling of plants
being built to meet the annual average needs. on their anticipated start dates, but also assumes a 69%
utilisation in a typical operating year, and half of this (35%) in
Figure 26 illustrates the author’s estimates of future power a commissioning year. For this reason, there is an unusual
generation output based on the capacity growth shown in pattern of low utilisations in later years as some of the largest
Figure 24, and logical assumptions on the future utilisation of stations come online, and so decreases the average utilisation
the existing and newly constructed power generating fleet. of the new fleet. The existing coal and gas fleet operate in
accordance to historical averages. At least seven years of
When compared with the generation projection published by operating data are used where possible to consider variations
Hoang Luong (2006), there is good agreement in the overall in climatic phenomenon such as El Niño. Further assumption
level of generation, although after 2013, the author’s estimates are as follows:
show a potential surplus of electricity on an annual basis. This ● new gas CCGT plants operate at around 10% points
trend excludes the extra power that will be made available from above the coal fleet, a figure seemingly consistent with
future imports from neighbouring hydroelectric projects in historical averages, but by no means certain for future
Laos, Cambodia, and China. While imports may be relatively operation if gas prices remain high.
small compared with generation, the projection relies solely on ● new nuclear plants operate at 80% in a normal operating
specific assumptions. These assumptions include: year;
● the successful completion of all plants both under ● new hydro plants operate as existing plants do and are
construction and those that are planned; entirely dependent on historical averages;
● the projection does not speculate any further plant ● the utilisations of existing stations as illustrated in the
announcements, or project cancellations, hence there are despatch curve in Figure 20, page 48.
300
hydroelectricity
nuclear
250 oil (boiler / IC)
coal (including BFG and coal slurry)
gas and oil GT / boiler / IC

200
Power generation, TWe
gas and oil CCGT
Generation projection by Hoang Luong (2006)

150
100
50
0
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2020 2025
Figure 26 Comparison of power generation projections, 2000-25 (author’s estimates)

The impact of future power generation on coal demand
Huang Luong (2006) shows a different scenario, which shows

less development in coal-fired power, and a greater emphasis
on gas-fired and hydropower. These are perfectly plausible
scenarios, however, this is not evident in the current proposals
to build more capacity.
Regardless of the expected scenario for the growth in

coal-fired power, there is certainty that Vietnam will consume
more coal than it did before, and will participate as a coal
importer in the world market. However, the extent of this
growth will be determined by several factors:
● the rise in coal-fired capacity capable of burning
bituminous coals in conventional pulverised fuel (pf)
boilers as well as ‘W-flame’ boilers which will be
discussed later in this report;
● the utilisation of the existing and new power station
fleet;
● the efficiency of the existing and new power station fleet.
These factors combined allow fuel input to be calculated and

provide an idea of the coal consumption that could arise from
future power trends. The first two issues have been discussed
in the previous section, the next section will look at some of
the issues regarding the efficiency of the power station fleet in
Vietnam.

18 Power plant efficiency
The efficiencies of plants were calculated using IEA data for
power station output from coal-fired plants, and the energy
flow into electricity producers and autoproducers for coal
(expressed in ktoe then converted to TJ) :
% Efficiency (␩) = [TWh output x 105]

÷ [Fuel input in TJ ÷ 3.6
In 2006, the average efficiency of the thermal fleet (coal, gas,

and oil) amounted to around 34% (see Figure 27). The
efficiency of the coal-fired fleet was 36%, which is
surprisingly respectable and evidence of this is shown by the
performance data published for the massive Pha Lai station
(Hagiu and Ito, 2008). This efficiency may only apply to the
later units constructed in 2001, while the older units built in
the 1980s might be achieving less than 26%. Issues that lead
to the deterioration of efficiencies in existing older stations
are discussed in the next chapter, which include lack of
maintenance and variable fuel qualities.
Oil and gas stations operated at around 33%, but the results
are clearly skewed by the performance of single cycle
turbines and boilers, while CCGT plants, which make up
more than half the oil/gas capacity are likely to be operating
at an efficiency of 50–55%. Understanding the operation of
the oil-fired and gas-fired fleets is complicated in Vietnam
since many gas turbine based generators burn both gas and oil
distillates. Therefore, allocating oil and gas flows into power
stations can be complicated, hence these station types were
combined for convenience.
60
50
40
Efficiency, %
30
20
10
0
coal-fired oil and gas average fleet
fleet fleet efficiency
(weighted)
Figure 27 Estimated efficiency of the thermal

power generating fleet in 2006 (author’s
estimates)

19 Coal-fired power and cleaner coal technologies
Vietnam’s coal-fired plants are all subcritical stations, reheater pass superheater pass
including those that are currently under construction. There is
a move to supercritical steam conditions in future designs (for steam drum
example the 1200 MWe Long Phu plant), but the roll-out of
these technologies remains amongst planned plant, and not
yet realised in any of the current plants that are under platen and final
construction, let alone the existing fleet. Furthermore, much superheaters
of the current capacity and those being built are plants located
in the north and so designed for the local anthracite. Given the
fuel qualities of Vietnamese coals, boilers and furnaces have
to be specially adapted to deal with many of the difficulties fuel and
faced by burning such high rank coals due to low volatility. secondary
Whether these plants may switch to the international seaborne air inlet
plate gilled
market for coal is not certain, but it appears that much of the economiser
power capacity is designed for anthracite coals at the moment. cyclone
Another risk to any projection is the possibility that the Red concentrators
River Basin gives rise to a wealth of lower rank coals, which
could skew projections in the future. flame
development
19.1 Combustion of ‘difficult’ fuels

refractory
Low volatile anthracite coals present particular combustion burners
lined
difficulties in terms of achieving low unburnt carbon levels, lower furnace
good ignition, flame stabilisation and minimum load without
tertiary
requiring oil support firing. Most anthracite-fired boilers use a
air inlet
‘downshot’ firing technique where the fuel is fired downwards
at an angle as opposed to the horizontal flames utilised in a primary secondary
typical bituminous steam coal boiler. One notable example of combustion zone combustion zone
a downshot-fired boiler is the Pha Lai 2 power station. This
type of boiler is also called the W-flame or arch-fired boiler Figure 28 Downshot furnace and firing
due to the shape of the combustion flow. The residence time arrangement (Hough, 1998)
of the unburnt fuel is increased to ensure that the fuel is fully
utilised while travelling down the boiler sides in the primary The fuel is pulverised and passed through the cyclone
combustion zones, and then up through the centre or concentrators to reduce the air:fuel ratio before entering the
secondary combustion zone (see Figure 28). burners. The concentrated fuel enters the furnace, forced
downwards. The combustion air is received through the firing
Low volatile coals such as high carbon anthracite are arch, providing momentum for the downward force needed to
therefore burned with a greater effectiveness than they would keep the flame pointing down. The key to the technique of
be in a standard boiler. The station is a 2 x 300 MWe burning the anthracite is to keep absorption and circulation of
subcritical plant that was commissioned in 2001 in the state of the combusting fuel efficient. This is helped by the extensive
Hai Duong. The two units were funded by Japan’s Overseas use of ribbed tubing throughout the furnace, as well as
Economic Cooperation Fund (OECF), with contracts for designing the furnace in an octagonal shape in plan. Other
equipment being signed with a number of foreign firms features include special designs to minimise material fatigue
including Sumitomo, Stone and Webster, Doosan Babcock and erosion considering the fuel is much harder than
(then Mitsui Babcock), and Hyundai Engineering & bituminous coal and will be prone to greater wear and tear.
Construction.
The design coal is a blend of five coals, which come from the
The station will comprise of two Doosan Babcock natural major coal producing regions in Campha, Hon Gai, and Uong
circulation boilers capable of burning 922 t/h (see Figure 28). Bi coalfields. The fuel is a blend, which will have a volatile
The boiler can raise main steam at a temperature of 541ºC, content of 3.75% (dmmf) and 30% ash content. Some coals
and reheat steam at the same temperature. Main steam had volatile contents of 1% and more than 30% ash, making
pressure is 17 MPa (174.6 kg/cm2) to two GE D5 them some of the most difficult coals to burn, anywhere in the
tandem-compound double flow steam turbines. The plant world, at this scale. Much of the development was carried out
includes FGD and a new coal handling and blending facility. on a 160 kWe single burner facility based in the UK, which
The technology for burning anthracite is proven and based on received shipments of Vietnamese and Chinese anthracites.
Doosan Babcock’s plant at Yue Yang in China, which of
similar size to the Pha Lai 2. In some ways, the demonstration of this technique is proven

Coal-fired power and cleaner coal technologies
in the relatively good efficiencies achieved by the coal-fired The environmental performance for the station exceeds
fleet in Vietnam. According to Tavoulareas (2008) there is national standards by a considerable margin. Particulate
some 54 GWe of coal-fired capacity that can burn anthracite controls can give emissions of 50 mg/m3 (the national
around the world; 43 GWe of this is in China. As of 2008, standard being 200 mg/m3). NOx is controlled by air staging
Vietnam had around 2 GWe of anthracite burning capacity. in the furnace and appropriate furnace temperatures. NOx
levels are well within emissions standards, with emission
A few supercritical plants exist in the world that are fuelled levels of 500 mg/m3 (the national standard being 1000 mg/m3
using anthracite. China has 4300 MWe of supercritical which is high by international standards). The plant would
capacity, which can burn 100% anthracite, or a blend. Russia achieve SO2 emissions of 300 mg/m3 (compared with the
also has 1600 MWe of capacity that can burn a blend of national standard of 500 mg/m3) (see Tables 10 and 11). SO2
anthracite and bituminous coal under supercritical conditions. control is achieved by the inherent desulphurisation within the
furnace due to lime residing in the fuel ash, but also by
While subcritical plants are the plant of choice, Vietnam limestone injection. The limestone is transported to the plant
should move towards supercritical arch-fired plants, which by truck, and milled and stored in silos. From there, the
also employs the W-flame system (or indeed any design processed limestone is pneumatically transported and injected
capable of burning anthracite). Modern designs can use low together with the fuel into the lower section of the furnace
NOx multi-level air staging and fuel preheating. ACFB is (see Figure 29).
already being utilised by plants operated by Vinacomin.
The key to the technology is achieving the correct residence
time for the fuel in the furnace. This is aided by using
19.2 Circulating fluidised bed high-efficiency cyclone systems. A good circulation rate
allows for high heat transfer, while an even heat transfer in the
technology furnace prevents the excessively hot gases at the inlet of the
One of the benefits of circulating fluidised bed combustion cyclone (on the second pass) from causing slagging and high
(CFBC) is the ability for the boiler to burn low quality coals. temperature problems in the cyclone.
The term ‘quality’ is loose, but in this context refers to coal
which might have a low calorific value which results from The largest and newest CFBC plant in Vietnam is the Campha
having a high ash content. The residence time is increased to thermal power plant. It is located in the area of Quang Ninh
ensure that the low calorific value coal is burned effectively. Province. The plant will come online during 2009-10. The
plant comprises 4 x 150 MWe. The fuel consists of waste coal
CFBC is an extremely effective technology for burning coal slurry (40% of fuel feed) from the Cua Ong Coal Preparation
while reducing sulphur emissions using sorbent injection Company as well as Campha dust coal No 6 (60%). The
within the boiler, enabling the sulphur in coal to be extracted average heating value for the fuel is low at just 4265 kcal/kg
before the flue gases exit the boiler. There are two main types (Duc Thao, 2004). In order to meet the required SO2 emission
of fluidised bed combustion, atmospheric (AFBC) and standard of 500 mg/m3 in the flue gas, the limestone
pressurised (PCFB). consumption at full load would amount to 6 t/h.
Vietnam has 800 MW of AFBC capacity at three power The third and oldest CFBC plant makes use of low rank coal,
sites. These are Cao Ngan (100 MWe), Cam Pha a local lignite. Similar to Cao Ngan plant, it is operated by
(600 MWe), and Na Duong (100 MWe). All were built after Vinacomin. The Na Duong thermal plant was commissioned
2004, and so are relatively new plants. The Cao Ngan power in 2004. The plant uses coal from the Na Duong coal mine
station is an IPP project built by Vinacomin and was some 2 km from the plant. The distance is such that the coal is
commissioned in 2006. The plant is located 70 km north of transported by truck to unloading hopper stations where the
Hanoi, and the coal will be supplied by the Nui Hong and coal is screened, and then transported by conveyor to the
Khanh Hoa coal mines. The plant was financed by the power plant. Na Duong has a configuration similar to that of
Chinese Export Bank based on a long-term loan. The Cao Ngan, including two units with net output of 50 MW
Chinese contractor HPE was awarded the turnkey contract to each, both using a circulating fluidised bed boiler technology.
build the station. Alstom supplied the two steam generators Na Duong also has a closed circulating cooling system with
as well as other ancillary equipment.
The coals used in the Cao Ngan come from the Thai Nguyen Table 10 Vietnam air quality standards (Findsen,
province and are classified as semi-anthracites which have 2008)
high sulphur contents and low volatile content. Combustion of
Fuel type , mg/nm3
the coal blend was tested in Germany at the University of Parameter
Bochum in a pilot AFBC combustor. As it is a 2 x 50 MWe Coal Oil Natural gas
plant the units are small but, nevertheless, set new standards
PM10 200 150 50
for plant performance for the country. Steam temperatures are
538ºC while steam pressures are around 9.8 MPa (Kluger and 650 (coal with VOC
others, 2004). Water for domestic and technological services content >10%)
NOx 600 250
as well as cooling purpose of the Cao Ngan plant will be 1000 (coal with VOC
content ⱕ10%)
supplied from the Cau river.
SO2 500 500 300

Figure 11 Samples standards for new individual coal-fired plants, depending on location (mg/nm3)
Inside or <2 km from industrial

<2 km from heritage site (Type I) Mountain area
zone or urban area (Type V)
300 MW 600 MW 300 MW 600 MW 300 MW 600 MW
PM10 120 84 200 140 280 588
NOx >10% VOC 39073 650 455 910 637
NOx ⱕ10% VOC 600 420 1000 700 1400 980
SO2 300 210 500 350 700 490
steam outlet
steam
steam drum water
water
downcarrier wall
compact economiser
fuel limestone separator
feed water inlet
air dust collector
heater
combustion
chamber
fly ash
inducted
secondary draft fan
bottom ash primary air fan
to ash silos air fan
Figure 29 Schematic of the Na Duong lignite-fired CFBC (Duc Thao, 2004)
forced type cooling tower. The boiler will be designed to burn desulphurisation (FGD). Wet limestone FGD systems are
Na Duong lignite, which has volatile levels of 27.6%, and a fitted to two 600 MW units of the Pha Lai power station,
very high sulphur content of 5.4% (Duc Thao, 2004). The which are also equipped with low NOx boilers and ESP
boiler is designed to reduce SO2 by the injection of limestone particulate control.
into the furnace, a common feature of the CFBC. Like the rest
of the CFBC capacity in Vietnam, Na Duong is a subcritical Particulate controls are fitted to 1400 MWe of capacity at
plant consisting of two units with main steam temperatures of selected units at the Uong Bi and Pa Lai Po power complexes.
540ºC. In all, roughly 2000 MWe of existing and newly constructed
capacity has some form of equipment to deal with SOx, NOx,
and or particulates (including standard pulverised fuel and
19.3 Emissions control at CFBC boiler systems). This leaves a significant amount of
capacity that exists or is under construction that may not be
Vietnamese coal-fired stations fitted with any form of emission control, although this cannot
While the country’s 800 MWe of CFBC capacity utilises be confirmed for all stations. Without these measures in place,
sorbent injection to reduce SO2 in its plants, Vietnam also has coal-fired power could lead to a considerable amount of
another 900 MWe of coal-fired capacity fitted with flue gas uncontrolled emissions.

In 2008, Ha Long City hosted a discussion on cleaner coal equipment. Inspection is important, and in developing
technology for meeting energy demand. The aim was to countries, Henderson goes on to state that there is often too
discuss the options for improving standards and regulations much reliance on breakdown maintenance, and less
for coal-fired power plants. Enhancing the standards would preventative maintenance (replacement or repair).
then promote higher efficiency technologies in new plants,
use less fuel and hence reduce emissions. Further to the In the case of Vietnam, coal-fired stations may suffer from
adoption of new technologies would be the clean-up of older this, but thermal plants also operate as a load-follower
power plants such as retrofitting with emission clean up depending on the availability of hydroelectricity. The
equipment, along with finance options available to achieve incentive to operate optimally is also low if the major plant
these goals. operator is a monopoly, and/or has access to large volumes of
low cost fuel. This may well be the case for many of the
However, adopting regulations to set emission standards also minemouth stations. Some of the older coal stations may also
requires a standard for monitoring emissions and creating an lack boiler feed and flame control systems, as well as not
inventory of emissions from stacks across the power and having features such as bleed steam feedwater heaters.
possibly industrial sector. These data have to be publicly
available, and an agency set up that will audit emissions from It is likely that the latest additions to the power station fleet
all the power plants, and which will collate the emission data will be focused more on plant reliability and optimal
from a reliable method such as Continuous Emissions performance. The operation of combined cycle gas turbines
Monitoring System (CEMS), stack/source testing, stack for instance will require specialist expertise in operation and
source testing or other similar method. Clearly, adopting maintenance, which will be locally sourced, and/or contracted
cleaner technologies has far reaching benefits of reducing fuel in.
use, and hence preserves indigenous production, requiring
fewer imports, reduction or limitation of CO2 emissions, as Henderson also points out the need for auxiliary power to
well as reducing the need for expanding coal mine operations supply coals that may fall outside of the standard specification
which will themselves have their own impacts on the of the fuel feed. However, as a generality, anthracite is a
environment. harder coal than say typical bituminous products traded on the
international market, and so may require a great deal more
A common thread throughout the discussions at the Ha Long crushing and milling to obtain the necessary fuel quality.
City meeting in 2008 was the adoption of supercritical power Coals with a low volatile matter may suffer from problems
technology, in addition to the conventional clean up with unburned fuel. Some Vietnamese anthracites do benefit
equipment for SOx, NOx, and particulates. These steps would from lower ash contents and so slagging and fouling would be
benefit the Vietnamese power industry immensely. Further less of an issue than other coals with higher ash contents.
solutions to eliminate CO2 through CCS will not be
considered until such technologies are commercially adopted Vietnam’s coal-fired power station fleet is modernising
worldwide. rapidly with a recent build programme that will bring the
technology more up-to-date, with improved boiler
In 2003, the IEA CCC published a report on improving performance, and improved pollution control. One of the
efficiencies of coal-fired power plants in developing countries major problems of Vietnam’s older stations is simply
(Henderson, 2003). This section draws on Henderson’s work, deterioration of the plant.
and highlights some of the issues that might occur in
operating Vietnam power stations. Firstly, the New Energy
and Industrial Technology Development Organization carried 19.4 Underground coal gasification
out investigations on the Uong Bi plant in the 1990s. The
report recognised that many of the difficulties faced resulted Gasifying coal in situ within the coal seam deep underground
from the coal quality, and not the design of the power plant. is gaining interest and momentum in the pursuit to produce
This is an interesting outcome since the power stations are cleaner energy, but also importantly, to utilise vast resources
built minemouth in many cases, and so are captive power of coal that remain untapped and unmineable using
stations to the local coals. Turbine efficiency was recorded at conventional mining methods.
26–27%, an extremely low figure (see Figure 27). The NEDO
report recommended the replacement of numerous Underground coal gasification, or UCG, is not a new concept,
components, as well as combustion systems, ash handling but the rising demand and price of energy means UCG is
equipment, dust removal systems, and turbogenerators. being seriously considered as a possible alternative to
conventional coal production. The IEA CCC has undertaken a
Henderson (2003) observes some of the day-to-day study on UCG by Couch (2009) and analyses in detail the
operational factors that affect plant efficiency, and some of the current and past methods of UCG, its ongoing progress and
issues seem to apply to Vietnam. He considered that optimum possible impact it could have in greatly expanding the world’s
operating conditions in some industrialising nations do not get coal reserves.
achieved in older plants due to a lack of incentives to keep
plants well maintained, and therefore suffer from excessive UCG involves reacting (burning) coal in situ in a mixture of
wear. There are many ways in which plant performance can air/oxygen, possibly with some steam, to produce a syngas.
be degraded by a lack of proper maintenance strategy. This The steam may come from water which leaks into the
gives rise to deterioration of turbines generators and other underground cavity, from water already in the coal seam or

from steam deliberately injected. The technology remains in

the pilot-scale stage. There is now a better understanding of
the numerous by-products, some which are detrimental, as
well as the environmental and geological difficulties that face
underground coal gasification with the current technologies
and knowledge available.
Vietnam appears to be a willing participant in investigating

techniques and methods of utilising coal that would otherwise
be less accessible using conventional mining. This seems like
a contradiction since many existing operations have been
criticised for the adverse environmental impact. Yet, Vietnam
has invested in CFBC, is looking to UCG, and supercritical
boiler technology.
Vinacomin is reported to have completed negotiations with

Linc Energy (USA) and Marubeni Corporation (Japan) to
undertake stage 1 of the Tonkin underground coal gasification
project in the Red River Delta (Ecplaza, 2009; ABNnewswire,
2009). The site is 60 km southeast of Hanoi in the northeast of
Vietnam where large reserves of bituminous coal are found.
The project could use Russian technology provided by the
Russian gas giant Gazprom which signed an agreement to
supply technology to Vietnam’s Dong Duong Co (VBF, 2009)
19.5 Coalbed methane

Another non-traditional energy source is coalbed methane
(CBM). Reports suggest that Australia’s Arrow Energy is
investigating some of Vietnam’s coal reserves for CBM (PiA,
2009b). Arrow energy recognised Vietnam as having
considerable potential in the northern coalfields, which are
suitably located for the markets in the north, and are on the
opposite end of the country from where the gas reserves
reside. Arrow is focusing on exploration on the Thai Binh
area of the Red River Basin. It holds rights to a 2600 km2
block on the coast south of Hanoi.

20 Future coal demand scenarios and supply issues
Figure 30 shows the possible rise in coal demand as published 120
by Ding Trung (2007), and Thanh Son (2006). It is interesting Thai Van Can 2007
to note how within the same year, the Ding Trung projection Thanh Son 2007
100
Power sector coal demand, Mt

for 2025 is double that of Thanh Son, without any clear Ding Trung 2007
explanation, other than the higher build rate and higher
utilisation possibly expected by Ding Trung. The author’s 80
estimates are based on optimistic forecasts of all planned
plants becoming commissioned, but are consistent with the 60
more conservative projection by Thanh Son. Even the low
projection leads to a quadrupling of coal consumption in the 40
power sector. This level of increase over a twenty year period
is not unusual. China, Pakistan, and the Philippines have all
increased the consumption of coal in the power sector 20
sevenfold since the mid-1980s.
0
Figure 31 illustrates the rise in overall coal demand in the 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025
economy between 2005 and 2025 by three different EVN
presentations. Thai Van Can and Thanh Son both have a Figure 31 Coal demand projections for all
consistent trend and the only difference is likely to be economic sectors, Mt (various sources)
revisions in the base year consumption of 2005. These older
projections for 2025 are consistent with reports published in
2009 by Vinacomin (VnDG, 2009). However, VnDG (2009) 100
reported a more accelerated growth in the interim, with 2015
90
demand reaching 60 Mt. Some 26 Mt of this demand between
2015 and 2025 is expected to be met by imported supplies. 80
This would suggest that some time in the next 15 years, new
70
coal-fired capacity build beyond what is currently under
Coal demand, %
construction and at an advanced planning stage will almost 60

certainly be fuelled partly by internationally traded
50
bituminous coals. All the primary energy projections seem to
agree on one aspect of future consumption trends. The 40
electricity generation sector’s share of total coal demand will
30
rise from around 30–32% in 2005 to 75–77% in 2025 (as
shown in Figure 32). Coal-fired power is therefore the 20
primary driver of coal demand in the future.
10
In the latter part of 2009, coal prices could increase from an 0

estimated 26–27 $/t to Vietnamese power stations, to a value 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025
120 peat other construction

author’s estimate others cement
Ding Trung 2007
100 fertiliser electricity
Power sector coal demand, Mt
Thanh Son 2007
steel industry
80
Figure 32 Sectoral coal demand scenario for 2025,
60 % (Thanh Son, 2007)
40
closer to costs of production, perhaps 38–40 $/t
(see Chapter 11). Whether the price of coal will increase by
such a substantial amount is not yet determined. Price
20 negotiations are expected to be more competitive, and less
fixed. Coal negotiations are meant to take a more market-led
0 approach, and so while it is almost certain prices will rise,
2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 costs could fall if Vinacomin carry out efficiency and
productivity improvements. The rise in coal prices may well
Figure 30 Coal demand projections for power affect future coal-fired power investments, particularly if
generation (various sources) power tariffs do not increase to reflect the cost inflation.

Future coal demand scenarios and supply issues
exploration and development of reserves in new prospective

20.1 The role of non-power sectors regions in the Red River delta. Production capacity has been
increased in recent years from around 40 Mt to more than
It is not clear why the proportions of many of the other 60 Mt/y. Regardless of the efforts to achieve the production
sectors seem to suffer a massive withdrawal of coal, but fuel required for domestic demand, it is not possible to fully
substitution is the most logical explanation. Natural gas and satisfy all the expected production capacity, which may well
biomass fuels could replace coal but one of the major growth mean imports could increase even more, if demand continues
sectors for coal demand (apart from power generation) is to grow. Furthermore, assuming much of this capacity will be
cement production. constrained by transport bottlenecks and increasingly difficult
geology, the international market offers a source that can
Vietnam’s urban developments are driving up the demand for partly meet the increase in demand from the Vietnamese coal
construction materials, not least cement materials. Vietnam is stations.
aware of its need for cement and so has been driven to raise
capacity and output to ensure Vietnam is not subject to rising
costs of imported materials. According to Thanh Son (2006), 20.3 Future trends in coal-fired
cement production was expected to increase from 25 Mt/y in
2005 to 73 Mt/y by 2025. By 2010, Vietnamese industry was
technology
aiming to cease being an importer of cement and rely solely In 2007, EVN hosted a meeting in Hanoi which was
on domestically produced output. Previous chapters describes supported by the USAID Eco-Asia Clean Development and
how the cement sector grew at a rate of 12%/y in recent years, Climate Program (ECO-Asia CDCP) called Designing a
while demand in other sectors was also growing apace. The Cleaner Future for Coal (USAID, 2007). The ADB were also
paper industry grew at a similar rate to cement production, associated with the workshop where the importance of
although interestingly coal demand in the industrial sectors improving efficiency in the future coal-fired fleet through
grew at a higher rate of >17%/y. Clearly, the market for coal super and ultra supercritical steam conditions were seen as
goes well beyond just those of power, cement, and paper priorities for the Vietnamese power industry. It was
industries. The fertiliser industry is also a major consumer of recognised that the existing fleet of coal-fired stations had a
coal, but accurate energy consumption figures are not readily high proportion of unburnt carbon in the fly ash due to low
available. Some parts of the industry are gearing up for a combustion efficiencies. It was considered that supercritical
major increase in coming years. technologies were currently limited to non-anthracite coals,
and so the workshop recommended the increased role of
imported bituminous coal.
20.2 Coal supply
Based on the list of coal-fired stations in Tables 9 around
Previous chapters in this report allude to production levels in 6 GWe of capacity was being built in the North of Vietnam. In
2008 being around 40 Mt/y, and subsequent reports in July 2008 and 2009, the only coal plant of any notable size that
2009 suggested that planned production of coal was closer to was under construction in South Vietnam was the initial
43 Mt for 2009 (VnDG, 2009). In 2007, the coal industry was 1200 MWe unit of the 4400 MWe Long Phu plant complex
estimated to reach 40–43 Mt of cleaned coal by 2010. Coal located in the state of Soc Trang.
yield is usually lower than the gross output, and so it is
possible that Vietnam will reach this in gross terms. Out of some 10–11 GWe that was under construction, or was
at least in the early stages of construction in 2008-09, most
It is generally considered that half of the production will be were North Vietnam projects, but the Long Phu still accounts
exported, but future exports of Vietnamese coal at levels of for a large proportion of this. In terms of plants that are
around 20 Mt/y seem increasingly doubtful. For some years, planned, some 80–90% of the 18 GWe of coal-fired plants
the government have been intent on withdrawing from the that were announced were all in South Vietnam provinces.
export market, and diverting coal production to domestic Where before coal-fired plants were restricted to being
markets. This will have considerable implication on the world located near the indigenous coal production, the planned
market for anthracite exports. Under these circumstances, plants and the accompanying infrastructure to import the coal
certain anthracite consumers in China and Japan will need to by sea from either the north Vietnamese mines or the
revert to other sources of coal to satisfy their needs. international market is considerable. The assumption of
increased imports is not speculation but firmly embedded in
Vietnam’s coal exports were due to be cut in 2010, according EVN’s strategy to bring coal-fired power to regions which
to announcements made by Nguyen Chien Thang, lack coal reserves, but not necessarily displace coal where it is
Vinacomin’s deputy director. This long-term initiative is with being mined.
a clear realisation that any major rise in power generation and
coal-fired power will need to be met with adequate supplies In the 2007 Designing a Cleaner Future for Coal workshop
but as Figure 30 suggests, a great deal more power capacity (see earlier), EVN presented a possible scenario for coal
will need to be built that goes above and beyond what is sourcing between 2007 and 2015. It showed an escalating
currently planned. coal import trend for both EVN and IPP projects that could
even outpace the growing demand for domestic coal.
Coal importation appears to be a good prospect for some
years, although, this is dependent on the success of Figure 33 is considerably more optimistic than any of the

70 will be completed between 2010 and 2015 in the Quang Ninh

Coal Basin, as well increased surveying of the Red River
60 Delta Basin.
50
It is quite possible that many more power plants in the future
may be designed for lower rank coals found in the Red River
Coal demand, Mt
Basin, but until more information is available on this new and

40
promising reserve, this is little more than speculation. The
chief impediment to the development of the Red River
30
reserves would be the extreme depths of coal seams which
may suffer from excessive water ingress, causing substantial
20 hazards to conventional methods of mining, as well as the
need for environmental preservation of one of the major
10 regions of rice production for Vietnam. Some of the
impediments to future coal production are summarised as
0 follows:
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 ● increasingly difficult mining geological conditions at
depth;
imported coal for IPP plants ● exploration works not bearing as much useful extractable
imported coal for EVN plants coal as envisaged;
● opencast mine seams descending to deeper levels;
domestic coal for EVN power plants ● opencast mine operations facing increasing
environmental pressure as conditions of disposal
Figure 33 EVN vision of future coal sourcing discharge, water drainage, transport and mine bank
(EVN, 2007) stabilisation become more stringent to deal with a history
of environmental neglect in some operations;
other projections shown in this report, but illustrates a ● underground mines are below the self-discharging level
commitment of EVN to direct greater investment towards of water and getting deeper so that a series of problems
coal-fired stations that will use more imported coal. In this in terms of technology and safety aspects are required to
case, imported coal would emerge as a relatively small be settled such as control of mine pressure, ventilation,
contributor around 2011, and then by 2015 could account for transport, prevention of water inrush, as well as emission
more than two thirds of the country’s source for coal for of CH4;
power generations. ● prospective coals in the Red River delta are at a very deep
level, and there is the possibility that the overlying rock
Coal import contracts have already been signed in recent structures within which coal seams reside could be
years, indicating Vietnam could be a regular buyer of coal on relatively weak or fissured making for more hazardous
the international market in coming years. In 2008, Vinacomin extraction.
signed a contract to buy 3.5 Mt/y of coal from Indonesian
companies, PT Berau and Indonesian-based Maintime
company of Hong Kong (TJP, 2008). The coal was destined 20.4 Co-operation agreements with
for the Vinh Tan 1 thermal power plant, which is part of the
Vinh Tan power complex designed to have a capacity of
foreign countries
4400 MW in southern Binh Thuan province. This single trade In recognition of the uphill struggle that Vietnam will face in
accounts for 8% of the country’s current annual production modernising its industry and adapting to deeper coal seam
(43 Mt in 2009). Whether this deal is the start of a trend for extraction, Vietnam has fostered dialogue with Japan to
more contracts will depend on the price of international coal strengthen expertise in coal and mineral resource exploitation,
and the availability of suitable products. despite the fact that Japan has produced no coal since 2000.
The country faced increasingly difficult mining conditions
While there seems to be a great deal of interest in coal which were largely the cause of the closure of large-scale coal
imports, it is important not to neglect the yet unknown mining in Japan. Japan’s coal expertise nonetheless still exists
potential for domestic coal resources. Besides developing as a legacy from the coal industry, but also as being one of the
plans to open 7–10 new coal mines in the period 2008-15 most important markets for export coal in the world. Japan is
(Kuo, 1997), the national coal group was negotiating with the single largest importer of hard coal in the world (2007:
partners to import coal mostly for use in power plants. The 180 Mt), and the largest PCI consumer (2006: 11 Mt).
approach to developing the domestic coal industry remains Vietnam is the largest source of anthracite used by the
largely unchanged. The programme to increase coal Japanese steel companies. Ensuring a stable supply of this
production was set out by the Ministry of Industry to increase coal is considered crucial to Japan.
basic exploration works to increase the country’s coal
resources and reserves. Investment was made for exploration Japan and Vietnam commenced the ‘Japan-Vietnam Coal and
to upgrade proven reserves and ensure a greater degree of Mineral Resources Policy Dialogue’ a ministerial-level
certainty for future coal resourcing from domestic reserves. meeting engaging private and public sector stakeholders
The exploration of reserves at depths of more than 300 metres (METI, 2009). The meeting is part of a wider cooperation

agreement ‘Agenda Towards a Strategic Partnership between

Japan and Vietnam’ which was agreed in Nov 2007 between
Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda and President Nguyen Minh
Triet. In the area of coal, technology cooperation between
Japan’s JCOAL and Vinacomin agreed information exchange
on domestic coal supply, demand, production, safety, and
cleaning. Exploration cooperation has been conducted
between NEDO and Vinacomin, which agreed to define Pha
Lai-Dong Trieu as a candidate site for joint exploration.
Resource development and information on financial
assistance is being carried out between JBIC and Vinacomin.
Interestingly, all this cooperation has a political dimension,

but an important trade aspect also. With this in mind, it seems
apparent that the announcements to halt coal exports to serve
domestic markets could be misleading. Rather than Vietnam
halting exports, it is more likely exports will continue, but
imports will expand such that Vietnam becomes a ‘net’
importer.
Co-operation between Japan and Vietnam is not limited to

coal exports. Vietnam has explored possibilities for carbon
capture and storage (CCS) to capture CO2 for use in
enhanced oil recovery. The White Tiger Oil Field Carbon
Capture and Storage project was assessed in 2003/04 in a
feasibility study presented by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. It
as one of several possible CCS projects associated with
gas-fired CCGT plants in the Far East (GCCSI, 2008 and
2009).
CO2 would be collected from the combined cycle gas turbine

plants in the Phu My industrial area (Roed Larsen, 2006). The
plant is 70 km south east of Ho Chi Min City in the southern
region of Vietnam. The CO2 would then be transported
144 km by pipeline to the injection field at the White Tiger
Oil Field, of the coast of Dinh Co. The project is forecast to
capture and store 4.6 Mt of CO2
The system proposed makes use of the KS-1 process which

utilises solvents in a process designed by Kansai and MHI of
Japan (Imai and Reeves, 2004). The system is due to start in
2010, and will consist of two pipelines (Phase I at 9000 t/d in
2010; Phase II 21,000 t/d due in 2016). This project marks an
important start in Vietnam’s interest in enhancing oil
recovery; it is also a small step towards zero-emissions power
generation and climate change mitigation. However, the most
immediate issue for Vietnam is adapting to climate change.
In 2009, financial support was announced between Denmark
and Vietnam to provide $40 million to Vietnam to help fund
measures such as dykes, establishing warning systems, and
developing methods of purifying waste water. Denmark
recognises that Vietnam’s CO2 emissions remains limited, and
the most pressing challenge is to adopt adaptation measures
(Mogensen, 2009).

21 Conclusions
Although far from being a capitalist state, the economic In terms of the cost of production, actual figures are difficult
model today in Vietnam is based on a so-called ‘socialist to determine, but power plant operators are reported to be
market economy’, and seems to receive little political paying 26–27 $/t in 2009. This is claimed to be 70% of the
opposition within the country. Private ownership is actual cost of production, and so when scaling up, the
encouraged in industry, commerce, and agriculture. Since Vinacomin costs of production are probably averaging around
1970, the economy has also driven a steady growth of primary 38 $/t. This means Vinacomin was probably making a loss of
energy at a rate of 2.8%/y, averaging a much higher 7%/y in at least 9 $/t on every tonne of coal sold to the power
later years between 2000 and 2006. Most of the growth has generators. It is not clear from the reports whether the cost of
been attributed to fuels like oil products, which have been rail is included, but if not, the losses could be even higher.
used widely in road transport but also as a boiler fuel and
power generation. In 2008, power generation in Vietnam reached 76 TWh, more
than double that being generated in 2002.The Vietnamese now
Despite strong economic growth and urbanisation, biomass generate more electricity than Austria. In just ten years,
consumption in rural and some urban areas has not fallen. Vietnam’s customer numbers have increased from just
Biomass usage appears to have actually increased since 2 million to almost 10 million since 1995. With per capita
2000, from around 31 Mtce to 44 Mtce, indicating a electricity demand of around 600 kWh per head (579 kWh in
continued preference for biomass in residential dwellings 2006), it still remains one of the lowest in Asia. This is why
and the strong element of agriculture in the economy. In demand growth is expected to remain high. Per capita
2006, biomass and waste fuels still accounted for a massive electricity consumption is expected to double from 600 kWh
46% of the primary energy demand in the country. per head in 2006 to 1300 kWh per head in 2012. Yet by 2012,
Petroleum products accounted for 22%, coal 17%, and consumption per head may still remain half that of China or
natural gas 10%. Conventional energy production in Thailand.
Vietnam consists of crude oil production, natural gas, coal,
and hydroelectricity. According to official reports, the country was estimated to
suffer a shortfall in electricity of 8–10 TWh in 2008-09. By
The country’s coal reserves are still undergoing exploration 2015, the shortage could be 7–63 TWh depending on whether
and surveys in the major coal basins. An estimated 6.1 Gt or a low or high growth scenario for demand is applied. The
so of proven coal reserves has so far been said to exist, power shortage could increase to 115–225 TWh by 2020.
consisting of 2–3 Gt of economically recoverable coal, plus While the longer-term projections have a wide range, it
an additional 3–4 Gt of further reserves. While the quantity of suggests there is great uncertainty in the future demand needs
reserves is potentially in dispute, most sources agree that the of the country, while the future supply will be somewhat
major deposits are concentrated in just two geological basins, constrained by developments in more transmission and
Quang Ninh and the Red River basins, both located in the generating capacity. Power planning therefore remains an
north of the country. This also explains the geographical extremely difficult task for the state monopoly EVN.
concentration of coal-fired power plants in the north of the
country. The Red River basin has a range of coals from low On a day-to-day basis, Vietnam experiences a massive swing
ranks coals to anthracite, but it is Quang Ninh where today’s in demand from as much as 12 GW in peak periods, to just
coal industry operates and where some 60% of the country’s 6–7 GW during off peak periods. EVN therefore has a
known reserves exist. mammoth task in coordinating power station output with
demand at any moment in the day. Choosing the right
Amongst the more commonly mined anthracites in north technology to meet this is therefore a key criteria, and is why
province of Quang Ninh, the high carbon content is key to the coal-fired power is not only preferred, but necessary.
very high heating values. While high heating values are Dependence on hydropower, which can be very high,
advantageous, there are other quality facets of anthracite that regularly suffers during drought and puts pressure on the
make these types of coal unsuitable to burn in conventional entire system.
power station boilers, and have been described as some of the
most difficult coals to burn anywhere in the world. To help meet the needs for more electricity supplies, EVN
Anthracites generally have a low volatile content of 10 % saw thermal capacity more than double for both coal and
(dmmf) or below, some as low as 2–3%; bituminous coals gas-fired power in 2000-07. IPP developments increased
typically have volatile contents of 10–45 % (dmmf). Coal eightfold, more than 95% of which was thermal generation
production methods in past years have been a mix of opencast (manly gas), and a small proportion was hydro or renewables.
(60%) of output, and underground mines (40%) of output.
However, over the long term opencast mines will be shut due After 2007, the shift to coal-fired generation for new builds
to the depletion of surface accessible reserves. By 2006, the became apparent.
production capacity of the (known) mines operated by
Vinacomin was estimated to be 65 Mt/y, which produced Between 2008 and the first half of 2009, Vietnam
38 Mt. This would suggest that Vietnamese mines had a commissioned 5 GWe of new capacity, much of which was
capacity utilisation of 59% (on average). gas-fired (2.7 GWe) but also included coal (1.4 GWe) and

Conclusions
hydroelectric (1.3 GWe) projects. At the same time, the plant coal quality is expected to be lower rank than the Quang Ninh
capacity that was still undergoing construction amounted to a anthracites, although a range of coals are found there.
considerable 9 GWe. Nearly all of this 9 GWe was coal-fired Environmental problems are rife amongst many mine
and due to come online during the period 2010-13. operations and safety inadequacies will need to be addressed
to bring the industry up to date with modern practices. These
The estimated generating capacity in 2009 was around are all issues that the Vietnamese industry will no doubt invest
17 GWe, and could double to 40 GWe by 2015. Roughly 60% for years to come.
of the additional 23 GWe of capacity that could be
commissioned between 2009 and 2015 is already under
construction. This level of plant investment (possibly reaching
US$42 billion assuming 1800 $/kW capital costs) is
committed. However, the aftermath of the global credit crisis
in 2008-09 that afflicted the global economy may impact
capital intensive projects such as coal plants, and many of
these projects could be deferred or cancelled altogether.
Regardless of the expected scenario for the growth in

coal-fired power, there is certainty that Vietnam will consume
more coal than it did before, and will participate as a coal
importer in the world market after being an exporter for many
years. Even low projections for coal demand leads to a
quadrupling of coal consumption in the power sector. This
rate of growth is not impossible. China, Pakistan, and the
Philippines have all increased the consumption of coal in the
power sector sevenfold since the mid-1980s.
Other industries such as cement production which is also

energy intensive will push up demand. Various projections
suggest that coal demand could rise from a current level of
around 20–25 Mt, to more than 40 Mt in 2015, and then
anywhere between 50–100 Mt by 2025. The pressure on
Vinacomin to produce more coal will be somewhat relieved
by the increased demand for imported coal, although this may
well be a major driver to shift domestic coal prices up towards
world market levels. By 2015, coal imports could account for
a massive 50% or more of the total coal demand from the
power generating sector. This could mean a significant shift
away from traditional anthracite power stations to bituminous
coals. This could enable power generators to exercise more
flexibility in coal procurement and greatly enhance security of
supply of coal.
The whole energy market is changing rapidly and it is not

clear whether the repercussions of the shifting to a market led
energy economy will affect coal-fired generation, or future
coal investments. Coal-fired stations based in the southern
provinces of Vietnam will be financed on the basis that coal
supplies will be shipped in, either from the north of the
country, or from the international seaborne market. New or
modified port infrastructure will therefore need to be factored
into the project finance and planning.
The biggest uncertainty will come from the potential for Red
River coals to provide coals to power stations equipped to run
on either lower rank coals, or gas derived from underground
coal gasification.
The release of possible reserves in the Red River may open up

many more possibilities for Vietnam, but remains
inconclusive until full surveys are completed. Thus far, it
seems as though the Red River resources are at depth, from
between a few hundred metres to over a thousand metres. The

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Prospects for coal and clean coal technologies in Indonesia

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Supply costs of internationally traded coal View project

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Copyright © IEA Clean Coal Centre

2 IEA CLEAN COAL CENTRE

LHV lower heating value

Prospects for coal and clean coal technologies in Vietnam 3

2 A brief political history . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

3 An economy in rapid transition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

4 Institutions and energy policy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

5 Primary energy supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

6 Energy resources of Vietnam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

7 Coal resources and reserves in Vietnam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

8 Coal resources and reserves in Vietnam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

9 Coal production trends for Vietnam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

10 Methods of mining coal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

11 Estimating the cost of coal production in Vietnam. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

12 Inland transport and port infrastructure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

4 IEA CLEAN COAL CENTRE

14 Electricity demand and generation trends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

15 Electricity supply in Vietnam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

16 Power generating capacity in Vietnam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

17 The impact of future power generation on coal demand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

18 Power plant efficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

19 Coal-fired power and cleaner coal technologies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

20 Future coal demand scenarios and supply issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Prospects for coal and clean coal technologies in Vietnam 5

The country’s reserves are currently estimated at 6000 Mt, of

1.2 Geographical profile

Prospects for coal and clean coal technologies in Vietnam 7

The National Liberation Front began a guerrilla campaign in

The communist insurgency during this period of disquiet

After reunification, communist central control took a firm

Today, the picture is very different. Vietnam is a relatively

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Prospects for coal and clean coal technologies in Vietnam 9

Another major inflation risk is a devaluation of the

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Prospects for coal and clean coal technologies in Vietnam 11

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annual production is just 0.6–0.7 Mt/y, with ROM production

4.3 Overview of the Vietnam

As of 1 July 2005, the latest Electricity Law came into effect.

The overarching issues cover relatively advanced concepts for

Developments in generation will start with competition in the

However, while the principles are in place the likelihood of

Prospects for coal and clean coal technologies in Vietnam 13

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electricity petroleum products

biomass and waste coal

Figure 3 Fuel use by end-user in 2006, Mtce

However, finding disaggregated data on coal usage in these

The paper industry also grew at a similar rate to cement

Prospects for coal and clean coal technologies in Vietnam 15

deposits Today, production occurs at nine offshore oilfields, the largest

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Prospects for coal and clean coal technologies in Vietnam 17