Approximately 60 businesses in various fields have considered the support for development towards a 100% renewable energy in Vietnam by 2050, at aworkshop jointly organized by the Vietnam Business Council for Sustainable Development(VBCSD), affiliated to the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Vietnam (VCCI), and WWF-Vietnam.

The report "Scenarios for Sustainable Power Sector of Vietnam – Vision Toward 2050", recently released by the WWF-Vietnam and VietnamSustainable Energy Alliance (VSEA), shows the feasibility of 100% of renewable energy supply for domestic electricity demand.

For initial support to realize this ambitious plan, the enterprises of aquaculture and seafood processing, wood processing, textiles, construction, food and beverages in Vietnam have jointly discussed sustainable energy measures for each sector, and talked about the mechanism for 'green' investment to apply the sustainable use of energy, at the workshop "Development of Sustainable Energy - Opportunities for Businesses in Vietnam", jointly co-organized by WWF-Vietnam and Vietnam Business Council for Sustainable Development (VBCSD).

Mr. Nguyen Quang Vinh, Deputy Secretary General of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) cum Secretary General of Vietnam Business Council for Sustainable Development (VBCSD) said: "The business sector now plays an extremely important role for the success of the revolutionary transition to clean energy in Vietnam."

After listening to the initiatives and solutions for enterprises in the application of renewable energy, energy efficiency in the world and Vietnam, as well as sharing the experiences on energy-saving application of Coca Cola, the attendingbusinesses participated in the discussion on difficulties and constraints in optimization of energy use and renewable energy application, taking the references from the successful application in various specific sectors, and also suggested the supportive proposals and financial policies to promote sustainable energy development for businesses in Vietnam.

Also during the workshop, representatives of technical and financial assistance organizations, such as the low-carbon transition in energy efficiency project in the field of energy saving (LCEE/GIF) - Embassy of Denmark, the German Development Cooperation (GIZ), the International Finance Corporation IFC, of the World Bank (World Bank), joined the discussion with the enterprises, proposing various options in order to prioritize the investments and loans in the projects of energy efficiency and renewable energy.

"Renewable energy is a golden opportunity for investment, given its almost infinite reserves of energy and stable and predictable prices," Madam Pham Thi Cam Nhung, Director of Sustainable Energy Projectof WWF-Vietnam said. "The workshop will be a bridge for those enterprises which are interested in sustainable development and energy security in 5 important industries in Vietnam to access the financial institutions as well as consultants or counterparts in the field of renewable energy."

Given the support of the VCCI, the constraints and specific solutions for each sector; fishery and forestry products, textile, construction, food and beverage, will be collated by WWF-Vietnam and then recommended to relevant authority of Vietnam. This is also a buffer step for WWF-Vietnam to develop a larger sized project, with the purpose to promote the adoption of renewable energy solutions and energy efficiency for the business sector in Vietnam.

Trong Tan