Breakthrough mechanism to promote offshore wind power

Experts and investors said the draft shows the Government ’s clear determination to create breakthrough mechanisms to promote offshore wind power. At the same time, the draft also sets out a set of criteria to select the right investors with capacity, ensuring the feasibility and efficiency of the projects.

Energy transition pillars and breakthrough mechanism requirements

Vietnam is entering a large-scale energy transition period, in which offshore wind power is identified as one of the important pillars to achieve the goal of net zero emissions by 2050. This comment was emphasized by Dr. Nguyen Huy Hoach, Scientific Council of Vietnam Energy Magazine, in the context of the adjusted Power Plan VIII, which sets the target of offshore wind power capacity by 2030 at about 6,000 MW (6GW). However, despite the ambitious target, no project has yet been decided on investment policy.

In that context, the draft Resolution on the mechanism and policy for national energy development in the 2026-2030 period has dedicated Chapter IV to offshore wind power development, a move considered particularly important to remove policy bottlenecks.

Photo caption — Offshore wind power requires advanced technology, complex construction and installation techniques, and high-standard operating capacity. Photo: LP

From an international perspective, the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) believes that the draft demonstrates the great determination of the Government and the National Assembly in introducing a breakthrough mechanism. Mr. Bui Vinh Thang, Country Director of GWEC in Vietnam, commented that the mechanism for approving investment policies for offshore wind power projects instead of bidding is a remarkable step, because it helps shorten the time to select investors and is consistent with the requirement of "having a breakthrough mechanism for offshore wind power development" as set out in Resolution 70 of the Politburo .

Not only changing the approach in selecting investors, the draft Resolution also introduces many important incentive policies. Accordingly, offshore wind power projects are exempted from or have reduced fees for using sea areas; at the same time, the power purchase contract will commit to guaranteeing at least 90% of the average electricity output for many years during the loan repayment period. Dr. Nguyen Huy Hoach assessed that these are key mechanisms, creating a foundation for investors to build financial models and arrange international capital in the context of Vietnam restricting the granting of government guarantees for new energy projects.

Maximizing domestic and foreign investment resources is considered a key factor for Vietnam to achieve the goal of developing 6GW of offshore wind power by 2030. From an investor's perspective, Mr. Alessandro Antonioli, General Director of Copenhagen Offshore Partners (COP) and senior representative of Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) in Vietnam, highly appreciated the fact that the latest draft Resolution has removed the regulation that only allows Vietnamese enterprises or 100% state-owned enterprises to propose investment policies. According to Mr. Antonioli, this is an appropriate adjustment step, when Vietnam needs to maximize resources for this potential but high-investment-cost sector.

Mr. Antonioli noted that the current investment rate for offshore wind power is about 4 billion USD per GW. This type of energy requires advanced technology, complex construction and installation techniques, and high-standard operating capacity. Mr. Antonioli emphasized that in Resolution 70-NQ/TW, Vietnam also clearly identified the task of expanding the mobilization of private and foreign capital for energy projects, through the model of independent investors or public-private partnerships. According to Mr. Antonioli, in addition to capital, the participation of international investors with experience in implementing projects of similar scale is a key factor to ensure progress and implementation efficiency.

Sharing the same view, Mr. Bui Vinh Thang, Country Director of GWEC in Vietnam, said that international investors possess technical capacity, operational experience, financial potential and global supply chain networks - the factors that determine the success of offshore wind power projects, which are large-scale and highly complex. Mr. Thang especially recommends the cooperation model between domestic and international enterprises, because this is a structure that has proven effective in the world and is the key to implementing projects in Vietnam safely, on schedule and according to international standards.

From the local side, where the project is directly licensed and supervised, a provincial leader also emphasized the dual benefits of this cooperation model. According to the leader, linking with international investors not only brings capital, but also opens up opportunities to access international technology, techniques and experience. “When working with partners who have implemented large-scale projects, we significantly shorten the learning curve and can take shortcuts in new fields such as offshore wind power,” he commented.

Investor Selection: The Key Factor to Ensure Success

In addition to opening up breakthrough mechanisms, the draft Resolution also raises standards for offshore wind power investors. Accordingly, enterprises proposing surveys and being approved for investment must have a minimum charter capital of VND10,000 billion and equity capital of not less than 15% of the total investment.

Mr. Bui Vinh Thang, Country Director of GWEC in Vietnam, commented that this regulation is suitable for large domestic enterprises but has become a "barrier" for foreign investors. "It is not that they lack financial capacity, but it is difficult to immediately pour VND10,000 billion in charter capital into a new legal entity in Vietnam in the context of offshore wind power being still new and potentially risky," he analyzed.

From an international perspective, Mr. Alessandro Antonioli, representative of CIP, proposed to expand the calculation of equity, allowing to include the capital of the parent company and associated companies. Mr. Antonioli commented: “Demonstrating the ability to mobilize equity capital of at least 15% of the total investment would be more consistent with the practice of implementing large-scale energy projects. In that context, the requirement on minimum charter capital can be considered to be abolished, because financial capacity has been guaranteed through the equity condition".

Another issue noted by experts is the regulation that gives priority to investors who propose lower expected electricity prices when there are two valid applications for the same project. According to Mr. Bui Vinh Thang, this approach is not reasonable. Mr. Thang explained that the electricity price at the investment proposal stage is only an estimate based on pre-feasibility studies and often has to be adjusted during implementation. The 2-3 year gap between the approval of the policy and the negotiation of electricity prices with EVN is long enough for supply chain costs, markets and financial conditions to fluctuate, leading to a large gap between the expected price and the actual price.

International experience shows that this risk is not small. Mr. Thang cited a case in Japan: In 2021, Mitsubishi won bids for three offshore wind power projects thanks to its lowest electricity price proposal, despite having no experience in this field. During implementation, rising costs and fluctuations in the supply chain prevented the company from implementing the project at the committed price, and by August 2025, Mitsubishi had to withdraw from all three projects.

From this lesson, Mr. Thang emphasized that electricity price should not be the top priority criterion in selecting investors. Instead, a multi-criteria should be applied, including financial capacity, technical capacity, implementation experience, project development strategy, and the ability to contribute to the domestic supply chain. “This approach helps to choose the right investor with real capacity, ensuring sustainable and effective project implementation,” he said.

Sharing the same view, Mr. Alessandro Antonioli proposed that the draft Resolution prioritize investors who have experience in implementing or mobilizing capital for offshore wind power projects, marine infrastructure, or large-scale power projects, instead of relying solely on the criterion of lower proposed electricity prices.

According to Mr. Bui Vinh Thang, Country Director of GWEC in Vietnam, offshore wind power is related to national security, maritime traffic, oil and gas fields, marine resources, diplomacy... so it requires the participation of many ministries and branches. The scale of the project is very large, a 500MW project can cost up to 2 billion USD, project investment is complicated, far beyond the management experience of most localities. Therefore, the authority to approve investors in offshore wind power projects should be given to the Prime Minister, instead of the Provincial People's Committee as stipulated in the draft Resolution.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/kinh-te/co-che-dot-pha-de-thuc-day-dien-gio-ngoai-khoi-20251204220426618.htm