Competitive electricity wholesale market to open in 2019

Safe, efficient operation

Vietnam’s competitive electricity marketplace is being developed in three separate phases: the generation market, the wholesale market and the retail market.

The generation market was launched in July 2012. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Electricity Regulatory Authority of Vietnam (ERAV), 87 power plants totaling almost 23,000MW in capacity have joined the competitive electricity generation market, nearly triple the number (31 facilities) that joined initially.

At an October 8 conference summarizing the results of the competitive generation market and the trial of the competitive wholesale market, Pham Quang Anh, Deputy Director of the ERAV’s Power Generation Department said the competitive electricity generation market had reached remarkable achievements. He pointed to safe and efficient operations that have provided sufficient electricity for socioeconomic development. The competitive electricity generation market has also contributed to increasing transparency and fairness in the mobilization of power sources, Anh said.

Phung Van Sinh, Deputy General Director of the Power Generation Corporation 1 (EVNGENCO1) said the competitive generation market has enabled power companies to take the initiative in preparing plans for generating and mobilizing electricity and plant maintenance and repair.

Competitive electricity wholesale market

The competitive electricity wholesale market was piloted in July 2017. Real payments are slated to replace simulated settlements from January 1, 2018.

ERAV Director Nguyen Anh Tuan said the trial period verified the market’s compliance with the approved detailed design and allowed market members to become acquainted with its mechanisms.

It is necessary to complete a legal framework for the competitive wholesale market, and the biggest difficulty is how to build a cross-subsidization mechanism for power companies, Tuan said.

Nguyen Xuan Khu, Deputy Director of the National Load Dispatch Center said power sales were expected to increase after the wholesale market goes into operation.

Speaking at the conference, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Hoang Quoc Vuong asked ERAV, the Vietnam Electricity (EVN), the National Load Dispatch Center and relevant agencies to focus on accomplishing the market’s pilot operation in the remaining months of this year, and at the same time step up the improvement of information technology infrastructure, and training and capacity building for member units in order to run the market efficiently.

Theo VEN