ADB approves $310M loan for Vietnamese power plant

ADB has approved a US$309.89 million loan for the construction of 750MW O Mon Power Plant 4 in Can Tho Province, Vietnam.

"Viet Nam's power consumption has grown 15 per cent a year over the past decade, and will continue to rise at a double-digit pace for the foreseeable future," said Anthony Jude, director of ADB's Energy Division for Southeast Asia. "Viet Nam desperately needs more electricity, and the additional power supply will support economic and social development in the Mekong Delta."

The combined cycle gas turbine plant, which is scheduled for completion by June 2016, is projected to cost $793.5 million. The other capital source is a $370 million loan from Germany's KfW Bankengruppe. The remaining sum comes from state-owned Electricity of Viet Nam and the Vietnamese Government.

The O Mon Power Plant 4 will provide a more reliable supply of power to the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta, support expanded industrial activity, spur new livelihood opportunities, and reduce dependence on hydroelectricity tapped from other regions. It is aligned with Viet Nam's power sector development plan, which aims to more than triple energy capacity from 18,500MW in 2010 to 60,000MW by 2020.

The project will save approximately 600,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year compared to coal-based alternatives, possibly qualifying the facility for carbon credits.

A second plant at the complex is to be put on the market for private investors, while the Government of Japan is funding two others in conjunction with EVN.