Proposing more incentives for people to install rooftop solar panels

The Ho Chi Minh City Renewable Energy Association has just sent a document to the Government Office and the Ministry of Industry and Trade to contribute comments and complete the draft Decree amending Decree 57/2025 on the direct electricity trading mechanism and Decree 58/2025 on the development of renewable energy and new energy.

The Association assessed that the draft Decree has many progressive points such as applying the "one-stop" mechanism at the People's Committees of communes/wards, simplifying procedures and documents; increasing the rate of purchasing surplus electricity from 20% to 50%; adding regulations to encourage the installation of battery energy storage systems (BESS)...

However, for the Decree to truly become a breakthrough policy, the association proposes adding many incentive policies.

Specifically, it is recommended to exempt VAT for households installing systems under 100kW; implement a green credit package with an interest rate of less than 5%/year for households and businesses investing in solar power and BESS, with a guarantee mechanism or interest rate support from the Environmental Protection Fund and the Renewable Energy Fund.

At the same time, the association proposed prioritizing credit, VAT exemption and corporate income tax exemption for organizations and individuals investing in energy storage systems or using clean energy themselves.

The association also recommended piloting the “energy community” model, allowing many households or small businesses to contribute investment capital, share internal energy and participate in the decentralized electricity market.

In addition, this unit believes that it is necessary to pilot the ESCO mechanism - leasing solar power at "0 VND", according to which businesses invest in the entire system, and households/businesses only pay electricity lower than the grid price for 10-15 years.

"This model has proven effective in the US, Australia and Europe, helping to popularize solar power without requiring initial investment capital, while opening up opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises to participate in the market after the FIT electricity selling phase," the association said.

In addition, this unit proposed a BESS leasing mechanism, allowing businesses to invest in and lease systems for factories, buildings, and commercial centers to reduce maximum demand costs (Pmax) and optimize energy operations.

The Association also recommended issuing a separate policy for BESS, clearly defining technical standards and operational management; recognizing BESS as fixed energy assets, exempted from VAT and green credit loans.

Đề xuất thêm nhiều ưu đãi cho người dân lắp điện mặt trời mái nhà - 2 — Rooftop solar power system of a household in Quang Tri (Photo: EVN).

In addition, encourage businesses to invest, lease or provide energy storage services; at the same time, pilot the "energy community with storage" model so that households and small businesses can invest and share energy together.

The Association also proposed to amend the regulations on development capacity based on maximum load in the direction of determining self-produced and self-consumed solar power capacity suitable for usage needs and connection capacity, allowing for increase according to reality.

In case of surplus electricity generation, apply flexible electricity pricing mechanism based on time of use instead of fixed rate. The Ministry of Industry and Trade needs to provide clear guidance on methods for determining capacity, transparent metering, encouraging energy saving and investment in storage. This approach helps the system operate flexibly and efficiently and avoids “locking” capacity according to Pmax.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/kinh-doanh/de-xuat-them-nhieu-uu-dai-cho-nguoi-dan-lap-dien-mat-troi-mai-nha-20251029003651224.htm