Decree 61 regulating the granting of electricity operation licenses (from March 2025)

Conditions for Issuing an Electricity Operation License in the Field of Power Generation:

An organization is granted an electricity operation license in the field of power generation when it meets the following conditions:

1. The organization is legally established by the law, including enterprises of all economic sectors established and operating under the Enterprise Law, cooperatives established and operating under the Cooperative Law, and other organizations established under relevant legal regulations.

2. It has at least one technical manager with at least five years of experience in the field of power generation and holding a university degree or higher in one of the following majors: electrical engineering, electrical and electronic engineering technology, automation, or other related engineering and technology disciplines.

3. There must be at least four personnel directly involved in the operation who have been trained and tested to meet the requirements for power plant operation by national grid dispatching and operation regulations. They must also undergo training and assessment to meet electrical safety regulations and fulfill the following professional qualifications:

a. Hold a university degree or higher in a technical major for power generation facilities with a capacity of over 30 MW.

b. Hold a college degree or higher in a technical major for power generation facilities with a capacity between 10 MW and 30 MW.

c. Hold a vocational secondary school degree or higher, or an equivalent qualification in a technical major for power generation facilities with a capacity below 10 MW.

4. The power generation facility and its components must align with the power development plan, electricity sector planning, and the electricity supply network development plan within the provincial planning framework, as well as the implementation plans for power development and provincial planning. This includes the development plan for the electricity supply network and any adjustment decisions (if applicable), except in cases specified in Points a and b, Clause 5, Article 10 of the Electricity Law.

5. The project must have an investment policy decision or investment policy approval from a competent state authority by investment laws (except for investment projects that do not require investment policy approval).

6. There must be an approved environmental impact assessment report for projects required to undergo such an assessment. For projects not subject to environmental impact assessment, an environmental permit or environmental registration must be obtained.

7. The project must have been allocated land, leased land, or granted a marine area by a competent state authority for its implementation.

8. For hydropower plants: There must be an approved reservoir operation procedure, an emergency response plan, and a dam and hydropower reservoir protection plan by the provisions of the Electricity Law.

9. The power generation facility and its components must have fire prevention and firefighting acceptance results approved by the competent authority by the Law on Fire Prevention, Firefighting, and Rescue.

10. The power generation facility and its components must be constructed and installed according to the approved design and meet the conditions for operation and use.

11. For rooftop solar power that is self-produced, self-consumed and sells surplus electricity to the national power system, or participates in the direct electricity trading mechanism through a separate grid connection, a certificate of registration for rooftop solar power development must be issued by a competent authority and meet the conditions in the following cases:

a. Projects with an installed capacity of 1 MW to less than 10 MW must meet the provisions in Clauses 1, 4, 5, 6, 9 and 10 above.

b. Projects with an installed capacity of 10 MW or more must meet the provisions from Clauses 1 to 7 and Clauses 9 and 10 above.

Conditions for Issuing an Electricity Operation License in the Field of Power Transmission:

An organization is granted an electricity operation license in the field of power transmission when it meets the following conditions:

1. The organization is legally established by the law, including enterprises of all economic sectors established and operating under the Enterprise Law, cooperatives established and operating under the Cooperative Law, and other organizations established under relevant legal regulations.

2. It has at least one technical manager with at least five years of experience in the field of power transmission and holding a university degree or higher in one of the following majors: electrical engineering, electrical and electronic engineering technology, automation, or other related engineering and technology disciplines.

3. There must be at least four personnel directly involved in the operation who have been trained and tested to meet the requirements for power transmission grid operation by national grid dispatching and operation regulations. They must also undergo training and assessment to meet electrical safety regulations and fulfill the following professional qualifications:

a. Hold a university degree or higher in a technical major for power transmission grids with a voltage level of 500 kV or higher.

b. Hold a college degree or higher in a technical major for power transmission grids with a voltage level of 220 kV.

4. The power transmission facility and its components must align with the power development plan, the implementation plan for power development, and any adjustment decisions (if applicable).

5. The project must have an investment policy decision or investment policy approval from a competent state authority by investment laws (except for investment projects that do not require investment policy approval).

6. There must be an approved environmental impact assessment report for projects required to undergo such an assessment. For projects not subject to environmental impact assessment, an environmental permit or environmental registration must be obtained.

7. The project has been allocated land, leased land, or granted a marine area by a competent state authority for its implementation.

8. The power transmission grid facility and its components must have fire prevention and firefighting acceptance results approved by the competent authority by the Law on Fire Prevention, Firefighting, and Rescue.

9. The power transmission grid facility and its components must be constructed and installed according to the approved design and meet the conditions for operation and use.

Conditions for Issuing an Electricity Operation License in the Field of Wholesale Electricity:

An organization is granted an electricity operation license in the field of wholesale electricity when it meets the following conditions:

1. The organization is legally established by the law, including enterprises of all economic sectors established and operating under the Enterprise Law, cooperatives established and operating under the Cooperative Law, and other organizations established under relevant legal regulations.

2. A business plan for wholesale electricity operations is in place.

3. There is at least one manager responsible for wholesale electricity business who holds a university degree or higher in one of the following fields: electrical technology, electrical engineering, economics, finance, or other relevant disciplines, and has at least five years of experience in the electricity trading business.

Conditions for Issuing an Electricity Operation License in the Field of Retail Electricity:

An organization is granted an electricity operation license in the field of retail electricity when it meets the following conditions:

1. The organization is legally established by the law, including enterprises of all economic sectors established and operating under the Enterprise Law, cooperatives established and operating under the Cooperative Law, and other organizations established under relevant legal regulations.

2. A business plan for retail electricity operations is in place.

3. There is at least one manager responsible for the retail electricity business who holds a university degree or higher in one of the following fields: electrical technology, electrical engineering, economics, finance, or other relevant disciplines and has at least three years of experience in the electricity trading business.

This decree takes effect from the date of issuance (March 4, 2025).