TPO - Mr. Hoang Quoc Vuong (former Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade ) was found guilty of creating a mechanism for solar power projects to enjoy preferential electricity prices, and was then 'given' 1.5 billion VND.
The Investigation Agency of the Ministry of Public Security has just concluded its investigation into the case involving the Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN), the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and several related provinces and cities. It has recommended the prosecution of Mr. Hoang Quoc Vuong (former Chairman of EVN, former Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade); Mr. Phuong Hoang Kim (former Director of the Electricity and Renewable Energy Department); Mr. Nguyen Danh Son (former Director of the Electricity Trading Company) and nine other accomplices for two crimes: "Abusing official position and power while performing official duties" and "Lack of responsibility causing serious consequences".
Former Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Hoang Quoc Vuong caused a loss of 774 billion VND to the State in the Thuan Nam - Trung Nam Solar Power Plant project. |
Specifically, Mr. Vuong abused his position and authority to approve the proposal for the project to be added to the planning; at the same time, he "intentionally" requested a price mechanism of 9.35 US cents/kWh for the project, exceeding the scope permitted by the Prime Minister... Mr. Vuong's "intentional" actions created conditions for the Trung Nam - Thuan Nam Solar Power Plant (in Thuan Nam district, Ninh Thuan province) to be eligible for preferential electricity prices.
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Former Deputy Minister Hoang Quoc Vuong admitted to receiving 1.5 billion VND. |
Although the Prime Minister later directed the Ministry of Industry and Trade to strictly comply with the resolution, Mr. Vuong "ignored" it, leading to a loss of 774 billion VND for EVN. When being investigated, the former Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade confessed to receiving 1.5 billion VND from Trung Nam Construction Investment Joint Stock Company.
The conclusion of the Government Inspectorate on Power Plan 7 and Power Plan 7 adjustment issued in December 2023 clearly showed: For the Trung Nam Thuan Bac Solar Power Plant project and the Trung Nam Thuan Nam project, the appraisal of the financial capacity of investors of these two projects has not been implemented in accordance with the provisions of Point d, Clause 1, Article 33 of the Investment Law 2014.
The investor failed to meet the financial capacity requirements stipulated in Point a, Clause 3, Article 58 of the 2013 Land Law, and Point c, Clause 1 and Points a and b, Clause 2, Article 14 of Decree No. 43 dated May 15, 2014. In addition to the investor's responsibility, the Government Inspectorate believes that the Ninh Thuan Provincial People's Committee and relevant advisory agencies under the Provincial People's Committee also bear responsibility.
Recently, the investor of the Trung Nam - Thuan Nam Solar Power Plant project, Trung Nam - Thuan Nam Solar Power Company Limited (part of Trung Nam Group), has sent a petition to the Government regarding the suspension of operation of 172 MW of its capacity by Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) since September 2022. The reason given is that it does not meet the regulations for enjoying the FIT (fixed electricity selling price) rate. Specifically, 86 MW of the 172 MW, located on approximately 108 hectares of land, was developed by the investor in violation of legal regulations, meaning the land had not been approved, environmental impact assessments had not been conducted, and fire safety inspections had not been completed.
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| According to EVN, when the Trung Nam - Thuan Nam Solar Power Plant project was not legally complete and had not been granted an electricity operation license, it was correct that they only recorded the output but could not make payment. |
Trung Nam Group acknowledged the problem: the project is being built across three communes – Phuoc Minh, Nhi Ha, and Phuoc Ninh (Thuan Nam district) – but the electricity operation license only covers Phuoc Minh commune. From October 2023 to the present, EVN has only paid a portion of the electricity generation revenue corresponding to the area of the power plant located in Phuoc Minh commune, leaving an outstanding balance of approximately 274.2 billion VND for the remaining area.
However, an EVN representative stated that the corporation has been mobilizing the solar power plant's capacity to the grid and paying for the output and capacity according to Trung Nam's license. At the same time, they are recording the output of the excess capacity until specific regulations are in place. "For the legally compliant portion, EVN has made full payments. For the transitional portion, EVN is also making payments according to the provisional pricing framework for transitional renewable energy projects approved by the Ministry of Industry and Trade," the EVN representative affirmed.
Source: https://tienphong.vn/can-canh-du-an-dien-mat-troi-duoc-cuu-thu-truong-bo-cong-thuong-tao-co-che-uu-dai-post1673576.tpo
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