Saigon Invest Group ventures into power sector
Source: 19-JUL-2008 Intellasia | Saigon Times Daily page 1
Jul 19, 2008 - 7:00:00 AM Saigon Invest Group, developer of 16 industrial zones nationwide and several real estate projects, has plans to invest billions of dollars to develop a coal-fired power plant in central Vietnam in cooperation with foreign companies, sources said.

Quang Ngai Province has asked the Ministry of Industry and Trade to allow for Saigon -Dung Quat Development Investment Joint Stock Co., a subsidiary of Saigon Invest Group, to develop the 2,400-megawatt project in the province's Dung Quat Economic Zone.

The province has suggested the ministry to include this project in the country's master plan on power development for 2006-2015, said Le Van Dung, director of Dung Quat Economic Zone Authority's Investment Promotion Centre.

The Dung Quat power complex if approved will become the biggest electricity' generation project in Central Vietnam. Dung said that the company planned to build a coal-fired plant of 2,400 megawatts at an estimated cost of nearly US$2.6 billion.

But speaking with the Daily on the phone Tuesday, Dang Thanh Tam, chair of Saigon Invest Group, said that the total capital for the project would exceed US$3 billion.

"We will cooperate with foreign companies to carry out the project, of which Saigon Invest Group will contribute more than 50% of the required capital," Tam said.

The plant, expected to become fully operational in2019, will generate 15.6 billion kilowatt hours of electricity per year from four turbines, with the first one starting operation in 2015.

The proposed plant will use coal imported from Australia and Indonesia as feedstock, at an estimated volume of 5.2 million tonnes per year.

To carry out the project, the investor will also develop a port able to accommodate vessels of 150,000 tonnes for offloading coal, Tam said.

He said his company would need some 500 hectares at Dung Quat Economic Zone for the project, which will likely be situated near the country's first oil refinery in Dung Quat.

High demand for power and the government's policy to encourage private participation in electricity generation have prompted Saigon Invest Group to venture into the sector, Tam said.

"We will continue to invest into other potential sectors," Tam added.

He said the project will supply power to the Dung Quat Economic Zone and Central Vietnam, which are now in dir need of power for development.

Apart from this power project that is awaiting the final say from relevant ministries and the government, Saigon Invest Group also has plans to invest in some other projects in the province by cooperating with some foreign firms like J -Power and Sumitomo.

Private power projects are currently highly encouraged in Vietnam because of a severe shortage.

In recent years, the government has adopted priority policies to attract investors to build power plants, but the electricity supply capacity still cannot keep pace with economic growth.

Many investors have built their own power stations to cover their needs and sell the surplus to the state utility Electricity of Vietnam. Those investors include Amata, Nomura, Hiep Phuoc, Vedan, and Bourbon.