Hanoi (VNA) - 💧 Asprivate investment can play a significant role in increasing localpower supply, experts have worked to find better mechanisms and policies tosolve problems that have discouraged investment in the sector.

DeputyMinister of Industry and Trade Hoàng Quoc Vuong told a seminar on independentpower producers (IPPs) in Hanoi onSeptember 18 that electricity demand will increase by 7.5- 8 percent per yearby 2030 when local production capacity nationwide should reach 526 billion kWh,meaning the total capacity of the national grid would reach 131,000 MW. “Thescale and proportion of private investors have been increasing. Specifically,by the end of 2019, the national power source structure had a capacity of19,253 MW belonging to the private sector including power plants invested inthe form of IPP and build-operate-transfer, accounting for 34.4 percent,"he said. Vuong, also deputy head of the NationalSteering Committee for Electricity Development, added: “From now to 2030, anadditional 75,100 MW of electricity will be needed each year.” Calculatingthat the investment required for this power source is between 7 billion USD and 8 billion USD per year, the official said there is great potentialfor investors to join the market. Accordingto the National Steering Committee for Electricity Development,  IPPpower projects that have been invested in and put into operation reached atotal capacity of 16,400 MW, accounting for 28.3 percent of the total capacityof the national grid.  Otherexperts told the seminar that the renewable energy market should beencouraged by lengthening the feed-in tariff (FIT) mechanism for anotherone or two years as many projects of that type had faced difficulties anddelays due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As ofJuly, there were a total of 99 solar power plants operating with a totalcapacity of 5,053 MW and 11 wind power plants in operation with a totalcapacity of 429 MW, accounting for about 9.5 percent of the total installedcapacity of the system. Hoang Tien Dung, Director of the Department ofElectricity and Renewable Energy under the MoIT, said his department is working with the Institute of Energy tocomplete the Power Planning VIII and submit it to the MoIT by the end of thismonth./.