Wind

German developer seeks approval for huge Vietnam offshore wind farm

News comes after offshore wind giants Orsted and Equinor recently pulled out of Southeast Asian nation

Vietnam has set a target for 6GW of offshore wind by 2030.
Vietnam has set a target for 6GW of offshore wind by 2030.Photo: Yun Huang Yong /Flicrk https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
Journalist

German renewable energy developer PNE is reportedly seeking approval to build a 2GW offshore wind farm in Vietnam.

PNE is asking the Vietnamese government to green-light the $4.6bn project off its northern Binh Dinh province, reported Reuters, citing a statement from a local authority.

PNE CEO Per Hornung Pedersen visited Vietnam this week to talk with officials about the project.

PNE’s ambition to develop the project dates back to at least 2019, when Vietnamese business publication The Investor reports it began a related study.

In 2022, PNE signed a memorandum of understanding with Binh Dinh authorities on the project’s development. Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade expressed its support for the plan in August.

PNE plans to implement the project in three phases, with the first phase envisaging bringing 750MW of capacity online by 2030, reports The Investor.

With its long coastline and favourable wind conditions, Vietnam has among the best wind resources in Asia.

The World Bank last year tipped Vietnam as one of the hottest new offshore wind markets, after its 2021 roadmap for the country found it could have almost 25GW of capacity by 2035. It has set a target for 6GW of offshore wind by 2030.
However, Orsted and Equinor have both pulled back from the market in the last year, with the Danish developer saying it is now “unattractive” and the Norwegian energy giant citing headwinds for offshore wind generally.

Vietnam, a one-party Communist state of 100 million people, is currently facing broader political upheaval.

Its government is currently engaged in a wide-ranging anti-corruption crackdown known as “blazing furnace”. This has led to high-level arrests – including of several government ministers – and resignations.

(Copyright)

Related

Published 23 October 2024, 09:12Updated 23 October 2024, 09:12
VietnamPNEGermanyAsia-PacificEurope