Vietnam Electricity promotes energy saving solutions

A pilot implementation of the Energy Service Company (ESCO) through the project on installing solar water heater systems for customers is one of the jobs that Vietnam Electricity Group will do this year to realise the Power Saving Programme for the 2014-2015 period, according to the Vietnam Economic News.

EVN’s Deputy General Director Nguyen Tan Loc said the pilot implementation of the first phase of the ESCO project has been assigned to EVN’s Southern Power Corporation (EVN SPC) and prestigious ESCO companies in Vietnam who would install solar water heater systems for customers with average electricity consumption of over 20,000 kWh a month. They are mainly restaurants, hotels and luxury resorts in southern provinces. EVN is expected to pilot 10 projects of this kind with total funding of about 12 billion VND (570,000 USD).

It is known that the ESCO model has been applied in many countries. This energy efficient business model requires little investment capital and is mutually beneficial.

ESCO provides comprehensive energy solutions, including designing and implementing energy efficiency projects, energy preservation projects, building energy infrastructure projects for rent and implementing energy service package from setting up plans, installation, operation, maintenance to optimization of financial contribution.

Two parties will make deals based on the energy efficiency levels with clear commitments as they implement given projects. In other words, if enterprises invest in this system, ESCO guarantees to provide certain levels of energy efficiency as well as energy auditing. After the initial investment is recovered, the enterprises will possess the whole ESCO system and it’s cheap energy. In theory, an ECSO project is estimated to save up to 70 percent of electricity and reduce energy reliance on traditional resources, ensure customer safety and mitigate emissions to protect the environment.

EVN’s power saving programmes in the 2014-2015 period will focus on six key issues, including directing and managing; replacing incandescent bulbs with compact alternatives; advertising solar water heaters; piloting ESCO model and promoting power saving campaigns between the Ho Chi Minh Youth Union and EVN.

Apart from economic efficiency from ESCO’s energy service projects, the model also brings environmental and social effects like reducing greenhouse gas emissions, creating jobs, raising customer awareness on the project which leads to raising awareness of the community on energy efficiency.

Vietnam has huge energy efficiency potential, therefore, the pilot implementation of ESCO model will be a chance to review the effect, participation and response of customers in the energy service market. It will provide a foundation to make suggestions and appeals to agencies for support policies to expand and develop this model.

Along with the pilot ESCO implementation, this year EVN will also pilot a project on replacing incandescent bulbs with compact alternatives at dragon fruits farms in Binh Thuan, Tien Giang and Long An provinces. EVN and EVN SPC will subsidise 30 percent of the costs for dragon fruits growers to buy compact bulbs and sockets, 100 percent of the expenses to recover incandescent bulbs and assist them to install safe lighting systems on their fruit farms.