The current situation is not very optimistic. Only 3.8% of Ho Chi Minh City's electricity production comes from renewable energy. More than 8.3 million gasoline-powered motorbikes account for 85% of vehicles in circulation, emitting 60% of CO₂ across the entire urban transportation network. The average green space per person is only 4.4 m², nearly three times lower than the World Health Organization's recommendation.
In this context, this is not just an environmental issue, but also a vulnerability in energy security. When LNG prices skyrocket due to tanker attacks in the Red Sea, and when fuel supply chains are disrupted by geopolitical calculations beyond control, production costs for thousands of businesses in industrial zones in Binh Duong and Ba Ria-Vung Tau provinces are driven up.
However, this very energy shock provides a compelling reason to accelerate and realize the green transformation strategy. The existing "capital" includes 911 MWp of rooftop solar power already installed in Ho Chi Minh City, the potential for offshore wind power in the Ba Ria - Vung Tau area estimated at 5,000 MW, along with the long coastline and mangrove ecosystem of Can Gio... these are readily available resources waiting to be properly exploited.
The 900 trillion VND budget for the 2026-2035 period sounds enormous at first glance. But if we consider the reverse, what would be the cost of not transitioning? The cost of production disruptions due to soaring electricity prices? The cost of neighborhoods and streets flooded by high tides? The cost of millions of people having to breathe air with an AQI (Air Quality Index) consistently exceeding 130?
In fact, this investment is equivalent to only about 3.1%-3.2% of the region's GRDP each year, lower than the 6.8% of GDP that the World Bank recommends Vietnam should invest annually if it wants to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
Therefore, that seemingly enormous sum of money is essentially insurance for the survival and prosperity of a major city. International experience shows that, after the 1973 oil shock, Denmark turned the crisis into leverage to become a wind power powerhouse. After the March 2011 disaster, Japan also restructured its entire national energy strategy towards renewable energy.
Against the backdrop of conflict in the Middle East and increasingly unpredictable geopolitical shifts, Ho Chi Minh City is facing a similar strategic opportunity: transforming external risks into internal reform drivers.
The Green Transformation Project, presented by the Ho Chi Minh City Institute for Development Research, with 10 pillars, 76 indicators, and 137 criteria, is the strategic solution for this inevitable reform. The question is, with such an urgent project, which has been meticulously prepared, is predictive, and feasible, the approval time needs to be shortened, instead of waiting up to 180 days.
What is most needed right now is the early establishment of a Green Transformation Steering Committee with real authority; the transparent operation of the Green Transformation Fund; and at least one flagship project for each pillar to be launched in 2026.
Ho Chi Minh City has already set directions and implemented initial solutions. The remaining question is whether it has the courage to take the first step, to transform the crisis into an opportunity for its own survival and development.
Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/bien-rui-ro-thanh-dong-luc-cai-cach-post844126.html
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