8 billion kWh of electricity savings in 7 years

14/05/2013

In recent years, Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) has made efforts to call for public awareness of saving electricity and obtained positive results. However, it requires community’s involvement.

In recent years, Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) has made efforts to call for public awareness of saving electricity and obtained positive results. However, it requires community’s involvement.

According M.A Tran Viet Nguyen, deputy head of marketing of EVN, in the period of 5 years (2006-2012), the country saved a total 8 billion kWh, equivalent to trillions of VND.

Five million energy - saving lamps sold from 2005 to 2010 at half market price is one of the company’s outstanding results. The program helped increasing public awareness, replacing incandescent lamps, fluorescent lamps with compact lamps and boosting the development of fluorescent light market in Vietnam.

In addition, in 2010 - 2012, EVN took a role in the program of supporting installing 60,000 solar-powered water heaters with VND 1 million each.

EVN also reduced power loss of the system (especially the rural grid system) from 12.23% to over 9% in 2009 and to 8.8% in 2012.

However, there are still many difficulties in power savings such as the limited awareness of residents and organizations in using electricity while sanctions being not strong enough.

According to statistics, the wasted ratio in electricity consumption in manufacturing in Vietnam has been the highest in the region.

The challenge of reducing at least 10% cost of electricity consumption in state-budge-supported offices at the government’s behest is lacking of self-consciousness because they think that “it’s not their money”.

Wasteful use of electricity remained common, especially in public areas, offices, advertising lighting and street lighting.

Recommended testing facilities using much electricity

According to Mr. Nguyen, more specific actions are needed to saving power efficiently. They may include developing electricity pricing mechanism towards encouraging electricity efficiency, asking businesses to replace out-of-dated equipment with high- performance and energy-saving technology, banning the import of equipment, machinery, lines, technologies with low-performance and high-energy consumption.

Make a list of key energy-consuming facilities, require criteria registration and applying energy saving measures, initially audit all key energy-consuming manufacturers having electricity-consuming capacity of more than 500 kWh or using more than 3 million kWh/year.

By Minh Chau

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