Not necessarily increase every 3 months
Dr. Vo Tri Thanh, former Deputy Director of the Central Institute for Economic Management and Director of the Institute for Brand and Competition Strategy Research, said that EVN's electricity price increase is in accordance with regulations and is inevitable, in line with the general trend.
“The increase in electricity prices will impact the CPI by 0.09% as calculated by EVN, which is relatively close. Our electricity demand is very large and the risk of power shortages may still occur. Therefore, increasing electricity prices is necessary and sends a signal to foreign investors to invest in the electricity industry. However, it is still necessary to extend the roadmap and not necessarily increase once every 3 months,” said Dr. Vo Tri Thanh.
Electricity prices increased by 4.8% from today. (Photo: EVN).
In an interview with VTC News, Mr. Vu Vinh Phu, former Deputy Director of the Hanoi Department of Trade, said that adjusting electricity prices is necessary in the context of limited supply and high input costs, especially renewable energy sources, imported coal power sources or imported electricity sources with high prices.
“However, this adjustment must have a reasonable roadmap to avoid creating additional burdens for people and businesses. At the same time, the increase in electricity prices must be transparent in terms of information, must be calculated correctly and fully. The revenues, expenditures, losses and profits of the Electricity Group must be public. It is not possible to increase radically when allowed to increase below 5% according to regulations, but when given autonomy, it must be more public, with a reasonable price increase plan,” said Mr. Phu.
Citing the example of electricity price increases in some countries, Mr. Phu said: “In Poland and Germany, they have plans to increase electricity prices for 5 years, this year by 0.1%, next year by 0.3%… They have such a long-term plan to increase prices so that businesses can plan their production and business, and people can plan their consumption plans in advance…”, Mr. Phu said.
Mr. Vu Duc Giang, Chairman of the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Viet Tien Garment Joint Stock Corporation, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Garment Corporation 10, said that increasing electricity prices is inevitable and society and businesses must also share with the electricity industry.
“However, the increase in electricity prices must also ensure that it keeps up with the general trend of industrial sectors, especially those affected by a series of external policies. Therefore, the Ministry of Finance , the Ministry of Industry and Trade and EVN need to calculate appropriately and have a longer calculation period.
If the price increases every 3 months, it will cause many difficulties for businesses, because they will not be able to proactively calculate the cost of a product to include in the cost. When calculating and negotiating prices with partners, it must be stable and proactive. If the price increases in such a short time, it will cause many difficulties for businesses," said Mr. Giang.
According to Mr. Vu Duc Giang, if including this electricity price increase, in the past three years, electricity prices have increased by a total of 17%.
“For the textile and dyeing industry, the input cost of electricity accounts for 9-12% of the product cost. For the garment industry, electricity accounts for more than 1.8%. Therefore, increasing electricity prices will contribute to increasing the cost of goods, while Vietnamese goods are already weaker than other countries in terms of technology and human resources,” said Mr. Giang.
To reduce difficulties for businesses, the Chairman of the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association proposed that the State postpone corporate income tax. According to him, the banking and financial system can continue to lower bank interest rates for businesses, so that businesses will be less under financial pressure.
EVN announced an increase in electricity prices.
Mr. Vu Vinh Phu said that increasing electricity prices will have a comprehensive impact on the lives and activities of people and businesses, especially the poor.
For the poor, the current increase in electricity prices will increase their monthly electricity bills by several tens of thousands of dong. For businesses, the increase in electricity prices will increase product costs, thereby reducing the competitiveness of Vietnamese goods both domestically and for export.
“EVN’s claim that the electricity price increase contributed to a 0.09% price increase is incorrect, because they cannot calculate from start to finish. When the electricity price increases, everything falls on the silkworm, from production, business, consumption, and price competition, affecting the purchasing power of the whole society,” said Mr. Phu.
What does EVN say about electricity price increase?
According to EVN's calculations, the average retail electricity price increase of 4.8% will impact the CPI by 0.09%. Specifically, for households using less than 50kWh of electricity, the electricity bill will increase by about VND4,550/household/month. For consumption from 51 - 100kWh, the electricity bill will increase by VND9,250/household/month. From 101 - 200kWh, they have to pay an additional VND20,150/household/month.
Households using 201 - 300kWh of electricity will have to pay an additional 33,950 VND/month; if using 301 - 400kWh of electricity, they will have to pay an additional 49,250 VND/month. For consumption of 400kWh or more, the increase in electricity bill will be about 65,050 VND/month.
Poor households and social policy households will be supported with monthly electricity bills equivalent to the amount of electricity used by 30kWh/household/month. For social policy households with electricity usage of no more than 50kWh/month, the support level is also equivalent to the amount of electricity used by 30kWh/household/month. The support level for poor households and policy households is 56,790 VND/household/month.
Therefore, if the new price is applied, each poor household will receive electricity support of about 59,520 VND/month (excluding VAT). This policy aims to reduce the burden of electricity costs for poor households and social policy households, ensure social security and implement the Government's policy on supporting disadvantaged groups.
Mr. Vo Quang Lam, Deputy General Director of EVN, said that the electricity produced and purchased by EVN in 2024 and 2025 will have a growth rate equivalent to 33.6 billion kWh, mainly produced from high-cost power plants. Meanwhile, the proportion of hydropower is continuously decreasing and reaching the limit, gas energy and coal-fired thermal power, and oil-fired electricity have higher costs than low-cost sources.
"This year, weather fluctuations have reduced hydropower by nearly 7 billion kWh compared to 2024, coal-fired thermal power has grown a lot in the imported coal segment, and world coal prices in 2021-2023 have increased due to geopolitical fluctuations. In the first four months of 2025, costs for imported coal, gas and oil continued to increase," said Mr. Lam.
EVN regularly reviews, calculates and reports to competent authorities to adjust electricity prices. The adjustment carefully considers input costs, fluctuating costs, and the affordability of people and businesses to find a balance between the requirements. Mr. Lam said that with the responsibility of ensuring electricity supply, EVN must also be responsible for ensuring a competitive economy and social security, so the 4.8% increase is considered "relatively appropriate".
Source: https://vtcnews.vn/chuyen-gia-can-lo-trinh-phu-hop-va-minh-bach-khi-tang-gia-dien-ar942450.html
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