Vietnam state coal miner to boost output to battle power shortage

VIETNAM’S state coal miner Vinacomin will boost production by 15 per cent this year to supply the power sector, state media reported on Wednesday (Jun 14), as the country battles electricity shortages amid high temperatures.

The company, formally known as Vietnam National Coal-Minerals Industries Corp, will produce 39.7 million tonnes of the fossil fuel this year, Vietnam News Agency reported, citing its chief executive officer Dang Thanh Hai.

The South-east Asian country, a regional manufacturing hub, has conducted rolling blackouts at industrial parks and residential areas in recent weeks, which exposed its structural and bureaucratic problems.

Coal-fired power plants remain the largest source of power for Vietnam. In the past two weeks alone, they accounted for more than half of its electricity output.

Vietnam’s coal imports in the first five months of this year rose 39.9 per cent from a year earlier to 17 million tonnes, according to government customs data.

Vietnam aims to stop building new coal-fired power plants after 2030, and stop using coal for power generation after 2050. The surge in coal use is expected to be a temporary setback in its ambitions to cut carbon emissions. REUTERS