Supplying Vietnam with clean energy

The Bac Lieu wind farm and its 62 turbines will help supply Vietnams communities with much needed clean energy.

In 2019, Vietnam is projected to have a 6.5 percent growth rate according to the World Bank. Over the last decades, Vietnam has experienced a rapid increase in the need for electricity. In the shift from being among the world’s poorest nations, to becoming a lower middle-income country, the economic growth of Vietnam is outpacing the supply of electricity. The majority of this is generated from fossil fuels sources and distributed through the national electricity grid. This shortage has a negative effect on the economy and local livelihoods.

Supporting local development

The Bac Lieu wind farm is among one of many projects that the individual members of CHOOOSE have contributed to. The aim of the project is to deliver clean wind electricity to the power grid of Vietnam and at the same time mitigate carbon emissions by replacing fossil fuels.

In addition, the project supports local development through taxes to the local and state budget and investment in community activities. ‘Fund for the Poor’ and ‘Fund for farmers’ support local services and improve biodiversity through the planting of 24,800 trees.

Reducing emissions

The wind farm is located in the Bac Lieu province in South Vietnams’ Mekong Delta. In total, 62 turbines are installed along the East Dam of Bac Lieu city, spreading across the communes Hiep Thanh, Vinh Trach Dong, and Nha Mat. Each turbine has a capacity of 1.6 MW. This means that on average, 143,761 tons of CO2 is mitigated annually by generating 327,826 MWh of clean electricity every year. Also, the project creates 111 new jobs within wind farm operations, in addition to supporting community activities with investments of 167,000 EUR.

A Gold Standard project

The construction of the Bac Lieu wind farm started in 2011, and in 2013 the first turbine started to provide the national grid with electricity. In the third monitoring period of the project, from July 2017 until September 2018, the wind farm achieved a total of 146,111 tons of CO2 emissions reductions. With a high potential of wind energy, this project will accelerate the deployment of this technology in Vietnam, and at the same time meet five of the UN Sustainable Development Goals: 1) No Poverty 7) Affordable and Clean Energy 8) Decent Work and Economic Growth 13) Climate Action & 15) Life on Land.Bac Lieu is also among the very first projects globally having transitioned to the updated Gold Standard, namely the Gold Standard for Global Goals.