VIETNAM Trends and Developments Contributed by: Justin Gisz, Minh Duong and Phong Nguyen, Asia Counsel Vietnam Law Company Limited
development objectives, and prospective capacity allocation for the various key sources of power gen - eration in Vietnam. Furthermore, they delineate the requisite resources in terms of financial investment, land acquisition, maritime zones, and necessary regu - latory apparatus within the energy sector. In particu - lar, these key strategic plans promote and facilitate investment from the private sector – including foreign investment – in Power Projects throughout the periods to which the plans apply. On 15 April 2025, the Prime Minister issued Decision No 768/QD-TTg amending PDP VIII. The amend - ments focused on promoting renewable energy, with additional capacity for wind, solar, and hydropower (including pumped-storage hydropower), and outlined a framework for developing nuclear power, starting from 2030. Direct Power Purchase Agreements Direct power purchase agreements (“DPPAs”) are now regulated under Decree 57/2025/ND-CP dated 3 March 2025 of the government (“Decree 57”). Effec - tive from 3 March 2025, Decree 57 allows renewa - ble energy generators (“GENCOs”) and large power consumers to enter into and implement direct power purchase agreements (“DPPAs”) via private wire sys - tems (“Physical DPPAs”) or the national grid (“Virtual DPPAs”). The Physical DPPA model empowers eligible GEN - COs to sell electricity directly to large power consum - ers – those with a monthly usage of at least 200,000 kWh – through a dedicated private wire system. This model fosters greater efficiency by eliminating the intermediary role of EVN, allowing for faster project implementation and potentially lower costs. Further - more, it encourages private investment in renewable energy by permitting full private ownership and opera - tion of projects, including the establishment of inde - pendent transmission lines. This model is expected to increase bankability for the Power Projects and to be particularly attractive to foreign investors seeking to develop and/or acquire Power Projects in Vietnam. Apart from compliance with regulations on invest - ment, planning, construction, firefighting and preven - tion and environmental protection, GENCOs may be required to obtain an Electricity Operating Licence to
implement the Private DPPA model unless the total capacity of the project is less than 01 MW. There is no model or template agreement whereby the parties are mandated to apply for the sale and purchase of electricity under this model. The Virtual DPPA Model, on the other hand, caters to larger renewable energy plants with a capacity of at least 10 MW. In this model, EVN and power corpora - tions which are duly licensed subsidiaries or affiliates of EVN (“Power Corporations”) act as intermediaries to provide certain infrastructure and services during the sale and purchase of electricity between GENCOs and large power consumers. Under this model, GEN - COs will sell their generated electricity to EVN at a regulated spot price, while large consumers purchase electricity from EVN or relevant Power Corporations at a retail price, which is the aggregate of the spot price and additional service charges. GENCOs and large consumers may also enter into a separate contract for difference whereby they may agree on a fixed “strike price” for the electricity and compensation in respect of the difference between the spot price and strike price. To date, the Virtual DPPA Model has not been deployed in practice in Vietnam, pending further guid - ance from the relevant authorities and EVN. Rooftop solar for self-consumption Vietnam is incentivising the growth of self-generated, self-consumption rooftop solar power (“RTS”), with the issuance of Decree No 58/2025/ND-CP (“Decree 58”), effective from 3 March 2025. Decree 58 focuses on, among other matters, promoting the development by enterprises and other power consumers of RTS projects for their own self-consumption purposes by introducing attractive mechanisms and policies for self-generation of electricity. Key aspects of Decree 58 are as follows. • Development models: Power consumers may develop their own RTS projects by way of connect - ing to the national grid (“Grid-Connected Projects”) or not connecting to the national grid (“Off-Grid Projects”). • Surplus electricity sales: RTS producers of self- generated power from Grid-Connected Projects may sell excess electricity generated from their
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