Proposal to change the electricity pricing schedule.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade is seeking feedback on a draft decision regulating peak, off-peak, and normal hours for the national power system, in the context of significant changes in the power source structure, particularly the rapid increase in renewable energy sources such as solar and wind power.

Specifically, in this draft, the Ministry of Industry and Trade proposes that the peak hours of the national power system be calculated as follows: from January to April and from September to December, the peak hours are from 2 PM to 7 PM (5 hours) on weekdays (Monday to Saturday); from May to August, the peak hours are from 2:30 PM to 4:30 PM and from 7:30 PM to 10:30 PM (5 hours) on weekdays (Monday to Saturday).

There are no rush hours on Sundays.

Off-peak hours apply from 0 - 6 AM every day of the week (6 hours).

Normal hours apply to the remaining hours of the day (13 hours/day for Mondays to Saturdays and 18 hours/day for Sundays).

The Ministry of Industry and Trade has proposed changes to the peak, off-peak, and normal hour classifications of the national power grid in the context of the rapid increase in renewable energy sources.

PHOTO: NG.NGA

According to Circular 16/2014 of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the daily electricity usage hours from Monday to Saturday are regulated as follows:

Peak hours from Monday to Saturday are as follows: from 9:30 - 11:30 (2 hours) and from 17:00 - 20:00 (3 hours).

The off-peak hours were from 10 PM to 4 AM yesterday (6 AM), and there were no peak hours on Sunday.

Normal hours consist of three time slots from Monday to Saturday: from 4:00 AM to 9:30 AM (5:30 PM), from 11:30 AM to 5:00 PM (5:30 PM), and from 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM (2:00 PM); Sunday has an off-peak hour from 4:00 PM to 10:00 PM.

The regulations regarding the aforementioned time slots, as stipulated in Circular 16, have been in effect for the past 12 years.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the adjustment of electricity usage hours for the national power system stems from the context of actual operation and the need to improve the efficiency of the entire power system. Since 2019, with the strong penetration and increasing proportion of solar power in the power source structure, the power generation curve of various power sources has changed significantly. At the same time, the load structure has also changed greatly, with the industrial load increasing from approximately 30% to over 50% of the total load, while the residential load decreased from about 50% to approximately 33%, significantly altering the load curve.

Therefore, in the context of significant changes in the power generation structure, especially the rapid increase in renewable energy sources such as solar and wind power, adjusting the time frame is necessary to accurately reflect the characteristics of electricity supply and demand in the new context.

It is possible to shift electricity usage behavior.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade also believes that rationally defining peak, off-peak, and normal hours for the national power system contributes to improving the electricity load factor (the ratio between electricity consumption and peak power), helping to optimize energy efficiency. Through a time-based electricity pricing mechanism, customers will have an incentive to adjust their electricity consumption behavior to reduce electricity costs; reduce consumption during peak hours and shift to off-peak and normal hours. This helps to flatten the load curve, reduce the difference between peak and average power, improve the efficiency of power source exploitation, and reduce pressure on the power system during peak hours.

For power systems with a significant proportion of renewable energy, such as Vietnam, designing peak hours that are opposite to the peak hours of renewable energy sources (shifting away from the peak hours of renewable energy generation and/or coinciding with periods when renewable energy sources are declining) will incentivize customers to develop power storage devices to self-balance renewable energy generation at times when the system needs additional power.

According to Decision No. 14/2025 of the Prime Minister , the electricity pricing mechanism based on peak, off-peak, and normal hours of the power system is applied to electricity loads for production and business purposes (industry, commerce - services, restaurants - hotels, etc.), while residential electricity loads are priced according to a progressively increasing tier. Therefore, the application of peak, off-peak, and normal hours of the power system will only affect the electricity usage behavior of production and business loads.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade also stated that, through analysis of the electricity load component chart, industrial load capacity is quite high (even the lowest industrial load capacity is still higher than the highest residential load capacity). Therefore, regulating peak hours during peak residential load periods will shift the electricity usage behavior of production and business customers (especially industrial) to other time slots, freeing up power for residential loads.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/de-xuat-thay-doi-khung-gio-tinh-gia-dien-18526020218221558.htm