Unlocking the Potential of Rooftop Solar: The Upcoming Breakthrough for Renewable Energy

At the review meeting to finalize the draft decree on rooftop solar power self-consumption, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha directed the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN), and relevant units to calculate the load demand and system safety to base the adjustment of the planning “room.”

Simplifying procedures and increasing purchase prices

According to the latest draft by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, organizations and individuals installing rooftop solar power for self-consumption, not connected to the national power grid, will be prioritized for development without limiting capacity and exempting electricity business licenses. In the case of rooftop solar power with an installed capacity of more than 1 MW and choosing to sell excess electricity to the national grid, organizations and individuals must obtain an electricity business license as prescribed.

The Deputy Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Industry and Trade to simplify the procedures for issuing certificates of registration for the development of rooftop solar power self-consumption in residential and office buildings, without creating new administrative procedures. The Ministry should also consider setting the ratio of selling excess electricity from rooftop solar power self-consumption to the national grid at 20% of the actual installed capacity.

The Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) will make payments to organizations and individuals for the volume of excess electricity fed into the national grid at a price lower than or equal to the average electricity market price of the previous year, announced by the unit operating the electricity system and the electricity market. If this option is applied, the price for this source of electricity may be higher than the previously proposed fixed price of 671 VND/kWh.

Especially, the Deputy Prime Minister emphasized that there is still ample room for developing rooftop solar power in the North, so there must be policies to encourage investment and effective development. The Ministry of Industry and Trade and EVN need to review the load demand, transmission capacity, and system safety to adjust the planning and implementation plan and open up the “room” for rooftop solar power self-consumption, especially in the North. “This is the basis for submitting to the Prime Minister for approval of the adjustment of the national power development planning,” the Deputy Prime Minister stressed.

Statistics show that there are currently about 103,000 rooftop solar power projects in the country, with a total installed capacity of over 9,500 MW. According to the Power Development Plan VIII, the scale of this type of power source by 2030 will add 2,600 MW or achieve 50% of office and residential buildings. Therefore, if the planning “room” is expanded, the scale of this power source will increase.

Proposal for early implementation

Receiving this information, many investors expressed their delight. Ms. Cao Thi Vui, from Ha Long city, Quang Ninh province, shared that three years ago, her family invested in a rooftop solar power system with a cost of over VND 140 million, in return reducing electricity costs by nearly VND 2 million per month.

Due to the intense summer sun in the North, the system’s electricity production is surplus, so Ms. Vui hopes to sell the excess electricity to the national grid soon to avoid waste.

Sharing the same view, Mr. Pham Dang An, Deputy General Director of Vu Phong Energy group, emphasized that opening up the “room” for rooftop solar power self-consumption is a crucial policy to restore production and attract orders from the world to Vietnam. Currently, the requirements of major brands such as Nike and Adidas are not just about having enough electricity but also about using green energy.

To implement the incentive policy soon, Mr. An proposed that the Ministry of Industry and Trade and EVN calculate the load to report the parameters that can receive the excess electricity.

Talking to the Labor Newspaper reporter, Dr. Ngo Duc Lam, former Director of the Department of Technical Safety and Environment (Ministry of Industry and Trade), assessed that considering expanding the planning “room” for self-consumption rooftop solar power would untie the long-standing “knot” in developing this type of energy. The Ministry of Industry and Trade had previously proposed not encouraging the purchase and sale of electricity from this source or buying it at a price of 0 VND due to concerns that if encouraged, the capacity of this power source would exceed the figure of 2,600 MW in the Power Development Plan VIII.

In the long run, Dr. Lam recommended that EVN calculate the load, and if the system safety is guaranteed, the capacity to buy surplus electricity from this source could be increased to a figure higher than 20%. He also suggested providing incentives for cases of investing in rooftop solar power self-consumption with an energy storage system installation, which has the nature of a base load source.

“If the investor installs an energy storage system, EVN needs to buy electricity at a higher price than the average, for example, fluctuating between 1,000 and 1,200 VND/kWh. Because, without this source of electricity, EVN still has to import or buy electricity from expensive sources at very high prices,” Mr. Lam analyzed.

The General Director of the Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN), Mr. Nguyen Anh Tuan, said that the entire Northern region currently has about 700 MW of rooftop solar power, while the system capacity can receive about 7,000 MW. This figure is nearly three times higher than the development limit of 2,600 MW for the whole country.

Therefore, Prof. Dr. Sc. Tran Dinh Long, Vietnam Electricity Association, said that there is no reason not to encourage self-consumption rooftop solar power. With this type of electricity, the State will not incur additional costs for building the power grid. “If every household installs rooftop solar power, it will help reduce the pressure on the electricity industry in providing electricity during difficult and tense periods,” said Mr. Long.