On the afternoon of November 7, while giving comments on perfecting the regulations on granting electricity operation licenses in the draft Electricity Law (amended), some delegates proposed adding a provision requiring grid operators to have a plan to develop smart grid infrastructure and integrate renewable energy sources, ensuring flexibility in the power system; at the same time, unifying the authority to grant electricity operation licenses and the authority to manage the quality of construction works.
On the afternoon of November 7, at the National Assembly House, under the direction of Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Nguyen Duc Hai, the National Assembly discussed in the hall the draft Law on Electricity (amended).
The 2004 Electricity Law was amended and supplemented four times in 2012; 2018; 2022 and 2023 (effective from July 1, 2024). However, after nearly 20 years of implementation, there are still some issues that the provisions of the current Electricity Law have not met, and it is necessary to amend and supplement them to fully institutionalize the Party's policies and guidelines and other laws and resolutions.
Based on identifying the political foundations and summarizing the existing problems, obstacles and difficulties in implementing the Electricity Law over time, the Government has recently submitted to the National Assembly a proposal to develop the Electricity Law (amended) with 6 major policies and no new policies added.
Create a legal basis nuclear power development
Giving opinions at the meeting, delegate Hoang Duc Chinh ( Hoa Binh province delegation) paid special attention to the nuclear power development policy. According to the delegate, the inclusion of nuclear power development regulations in the draft Electricity Law (amended) is an important step forward in the national energy development orientation. This demonstrates the interest of the Party and State in diversifying energy sources to meet the increasing demand for electricity consumption (about 10%/year) and ensure national energy security.
Nuclear power projects ensure a clean, long-term supply of energy for production, especially for high-tech industries that require a stable power source. In Vietnam, there was a plan to develop nuclear power to meet energy needs and reduce dependence on fossil fuels. However, in 2016, the Government decided to suspend nuclear power projects, especially the Ninh Thuan nuclear power plant project, due to concerns about safety, high investment costs, technological issues, and developments in the energy situation at that time.
To complete the draft Law, including sustainable nuclear power development, delegates proposed the need to develop clear provisions on investment, management, and operation of nuclear power plants, while creating a legal basis for nuclear power development in the coming time.
At the same time, delegates also proposed to add regulations to manage radioactive waste, measures to ensure safety for the community and the environment when implementing nuclear power projects. This is to avoid public concerns and increase social consensus. Along with that, it is necessary to add provisions on training incentives, human resource development, and international cooperation in the field of nuclear power development.
Agreeing with the above viewpoint, delegate Trinh Thi Tu Anh (Lam Dong delegation) also highly agreed with the policy of developing nuclear power. However, because nuclear power is a special type of electricity, with very high requirements for technology, finance and human resources, the delegate proposed to add a regulation: The Prime Minister shall specify in detail the specific mechanism for developing, constructing, operating and ensuring nuclear safety of nuclear power plants.
According to delegate Pham Van Hoa (Dong Thap delegation), countries around the world have also tended to restart or restore power plants that were previously closed due to power shortages. Therefore, the delegate suggested that the Government consider reviving the Ninh Thuan nuclear power plant project or starting another project as soon as possible, with conditions ensuring environmental safety, people's health and national defense and security.
Delegate Dang Thi My Huong (Ninh Thuan delegation) commented: In order for nuclear power research and development to firmly ensure national energy security and sustainable development, meeting the goal of zero net emissions by 2050, it is necessary to research, develop and perfect legal regulations on nuclear power that are complete, strict, synchronous, and uniform in stipulating specific mechanisms and policies to ensure a legal basis for successful and highly effective nuclear power development.
The delegate also suggested that there should be a specific roadmap for nuclear power development to avoid wasting state resources invested in land resources at two nuclear power locations where in 2009 the National Assembly issued a resolution on investment policy and construction of Ninh Thuan 1 and 2 nuclear power plants; 7 years later, in 2016, the National Assembly issued a resolution to stop the investment policy of Ninh Thuan nuclear power plant and 7 years later, in December 2023, the National Assembly and the Government will allocate capital to Ninh Thuan to build infrastructure and stabilize people's lives in the two project areas.
"Investment in nuclear power development needs a unified policy for implementation, ensuring consistency, synchronization, efficiency, and creating trust among the people," the delegate stated.
Supply control and licensing will push up electricity prices
Regarding the issue of monopoly in the electricity sector, delegate Nguyen Duy Thanh (Ca Mau delegation) said that in the draft, at point c, clause 2, Article 5, it is stipulated that "The State has a monopoly on the operation of the power grid and power transmission, except for the power transmission grid invested and built by the private sector". Such a provision contradicts clause 5, Article 5 on "eliminating all monopolies and unreasonable barriers, implementing maximum socialization in investment in exploiting and using the services of the national transmission system's infrastructure".
"The current national power grid is about 95% invested by the state, so it cannot be socialized according to Clause 5, Article 5 of the draft law," said the delegate.
Delegates proposed to revise Point c, Clause 2, Article 5 to "The State has a monopoly on operating high-voltage and ultra-high-voltage transmission grids".
Regarding the issue of decentralization, delegate Nguyen Duy Thanh proposed that the Central Government only approve the planning of power projects, and that the appraisal and approval of projects be handed over to localities to implement according to the standards and regulations of the electricity industry.
Delegates said that the draft still has many regulations that demonstrate the monopoly of the electricity industry. While the demand for electricity is increasing, the draft tightens and controls the supply as well as stipulates many licenses, which will push up electricity prices, affecting energy security.
Regarding electricity export, the delegate said that the draft stipulates that the electricity export price is set by the power unit. The regulation as drafted is not suitable because the investment is by the enterprise, so the electricity selling price must be decided by the enterprise after fulfilling its obligation to pay the state budget.
"In Ca Mau, many large enterprises have registered to invest in wind power for export. Partners from Singapore are raising issues about buying and selling electricity, pulling the power grid from Ca Mau - Singapore without going through the national grid," said delegate Nguyen Duy Thanh, and suggested that the money invested by enterprises should be allowed to negotiate the selling price with foreign partners without involving EVN.
Giving his opinion on the discussion, National Assembly delegate Thach Phuoc Binh (Tra Vinh delegation) said that the draft law needs to supplement and clarify regulations on electricity price mechanism, especially prices for different types of energy and for each region.
Delegates proposed to develop a flexible electricity pricing mechanism based on factors such as peak and off-peak hours, geographical conditions and energy supply. This will encourage efficient and economical use of electricity during off-peak hours, ensuring consumers’ rights in accessing information on prices and the electricity price adjustment process.
Electricity price adjustments should be public, transparent and subject to the supervision of state management agencies. In addition, it is necessary to supplement specific regulations on the steps to open the electricity market, including the wholesale market and the competitive retail electricity market, and regulations on the responsibilities of management agencies in supervising and coordinating the electricity market, to ensure fairness and transparency.
Along with that, regulations on monopoly control of large corporations in the electricity industry are issued to protect the interests of consumers and investors.
At the discussion session, a total of 104 delegates expressed their opinions. The majority of delegates basically agreed on the need to amend the Electricity Law, because the current Law lacks many contents that have arisen in practice. The delegates also focused on discussing a number of contents such as: bidding to select investors for electricity projects; transparent and flexible electricity price mechanism; developing renewable energy; ensuring energy security and safety... |
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