DIRECTIVE

ON ENHANCEMENT OF ELECTRICITY SAVING FOR 2020 - 2025

In recent years, electricity supply for the economy is ensured, providing the secure foundation for economic development, investment attraction, protection of national defense and security, and social stability. However, considering how electricity supply for the 2020 - 2025 period faces many challenges because: (i)  hydrographical conditions ensuring output of hydropower plants are becoming less favorable due to climate change; (ii) dependence on imported primary energy is growing; (iii) wind power and solar power sources are limited in terms of size and there are many technical barriers to utilization of these power types; and (iv) thermal power runs into difficulties regarding investment expansion while power demand continues to soar, 10%/year on average, higher than economic growth rate, economical and efficient use of electricity must be treated as a crucial and urgent solution for maintenance of energy security, sustainable development and economic growth of the country in the next 5 years.

Implementing the Prime Minister’s Directive No. 34/CT-TTg dated August 07, 2017 on enhancement of electricity saving, the awareness of the whole country towards economical and efficient use of electricity has greatly heightened, resulting in 9 billion kWh being saved, which is equivalent to VND 15 000 billion, and an average saving of 1,5% of total annual electricity consumption. This provides an important basis for the whole country to further improve electricity use and regard electricity saving as a crucial solution to the risk of power shortage in 2020 - 2025.

The Prime Minister would like to request the whole country to strive to save at least 2,0% of total electricity consumption every year for the 2020 - 2025 period. In order to achieve this target, all organizations and individuals shall be committed to saving electricity. To be specific:

1. Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, Governmental agencies, People’s Committees of provinces and central-affiliated cities, enterprises and socio - mass organizations shall adopt the following solutions:

a) Electricity saving on their premises:

- Cooperate with local electricity authorities in formulating and launching their own electricity saving plans, ensuring at least 5,0% of total annual electricity consumption is saved every year.

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- Raise the awareness of all of their workers towards electricity saving, add electricity saving to criteria for annual assessment of performance, compliance with internal regulations and emulation and commendation.

- Expedite, review and regularly inspect compliance with existing electricity saving regulations and rules.

- Utilize and mobilize resources for installation and use of rooftop photovoltaic power stations and solar power water heaters to reduce consumption of electricity from the national electrical grids.

b) Electricity saving in public lighting and outdoor advertising and decorative lighting:

- Organizations and individuals managing and operating public lighting and outdoor advertising and decorative lighting shall take charge and cooperate with electricity suppliers in formulating and launching electricity saving plans, which must ensure that at least 20% of total 2020 - 2025 electricity consumption for the abovementioned lighting purposes are saved.

- Adopt management solutions and technical regulations and standards concerning public lighting; replace decorative lamps, lighting lamps and advertising lamps with power-saving lamps; apply automatic control technology to public lighting and outdoor advertising and decorative lighting.

- Apply power saving technologies to public lighting, and use energy-efficient and power-saving lighting devices for 100% of public lighting structures to be built or upgraded.

- Accelerate the roadmap to schedule-based and weather-based lighting automation for public lighting structures.

- Restaurants, hotels, commercial and service establishments, office complexes and apartment buildings shall reduce 50% of outdoor advertising and decorative lighting capacity during night-time peak hours at the request of local electricity authorities; comply with regulations on economical and efficient lighting, and be ready to cut back on electricity demand when notified by local electricity authorities in case of power shortage.

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- Use electrical equipment granted energy labels according to the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 04/2017/QD-TTg dated March 09, 2017 on list of equipment and appliances to which the mandatory energy labeling and minimum energy efficiency standards are applied, and the roadmap to their implementation.

- Regularly perform acts of economical and efficient use of electricity in the family such as turning off electrical devices when leaving the room, cutting off power supply completely if not using electrical devices; only using air-conditioner when it is absolutely necessary; prioritizing purchase of energy-efficient electrical equipment or electrical equipment granted energy labels; minimizing use of incandescent lamps; installing and using rooftop photovoltaic power stations and solar power water heaters.

d) Electricity saving at commercial and service establishments:

- Adopt solutions for economical and efficient use of electricity.

- Formulate and disseminate electricity saving regulations to customers and employees; cooperate with electricity suppliers in cutting back on electricity demand when requested.

dd) Electricity saving at manufacturing establishments:

- Formulate and adopt solutions for economical and efficient use of electricity such as using electricity in accordance with the intended capacity and determined load profile; having reasonable production plans; minimizing use of equipment and machinery with high power consumption during peak hours; and avoiding operating electrical equipment at no load.

- Install or integrate renewable energy sources such as solar power and wind power into their internal energy systems; prioritize energy-efficient equipment granted energy labels.

- Major energy users must save at least 2% of energy use per produced product annually, review and ensure compliance with the Law on Economical and Efficient Use of Energy and relevant legislative documents on economical and efficient use of energy.

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2. Ministry of Industry and Trade shall:

- Take charge and cooperate with ministries, central authorities and local governments in monitoring, expediting and inspecting the implementation of this Directive, and submit consolidated annual reports on such implementation to the national steering committee for implementation of the 2019 - 2030 national program for economical and efficient use of energy.

- Take charge and cooperate with ministries, central authorities and local governments in urgently performing tasks of the 2019 - 2030 national program for economical and efficient use of energy and national demand-side management program for 2018 - 2020, with orientations towards 2030, with a focus on non-commercial and commercial load adjustment.

- Direct Vietnam Electricity to optimize operations of power plants and transmission and distribution grids so as to use primary energy efficiently and mitigate energy loss throughout the system.

- Cooperate with communications authorities in propagating information continuously for citizens to save electricity.

- Direct Departments of Industry and Trade to hurriedly assist manufacturing enterprises and service businesses in replacing equipment with low energy efficiency with energy-efficient and energy-saving equipment and production lines.

- Take charge and cooperate with ministries and central authorities in reviewing, amending and completing legislative documents on quotas for energy use per produced product of sectors/subsectors.

- Cooperate with People’s Committees of provinces and central-affiliated cities in setting local annual electricity saving targets.

- Formulate and launch plans for inspection, monitoring and imposition of sanctions against individuals, enterprises and organizations not complying with regulations on economical and efficient use of energy.

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- Cooperate with the Ministry of Industry and Trade and relevant parties in researching, formulating and promulgating or proposing financial mechanisms that allow Vietnam Electricity to include tasks of electricity saving facilitation in price to competent authorities for promulgation.

- Take charge and cooperate with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Ministry of Planning and Investment and relevant regulatory bodies in allocating funding for the 2019 - 2020 national program for economical and efficient use of energy promulgated together with the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 280/QD-TTg dated March 13, 2019.

4. Ministry of Science and Technology shall cooperate with relevant ministries and central authorities in reviewing, amending, formulating and promulgating technical standards and regulations for energy efficiency applicable to electricity-consuming devices.

5. Ministry of Information and Communications shall cooperate with the Ministry of Industry and Trade in directing radio stations, television stations and central and local press agencies to develop and broadcast radio and television programs concerning electricity saving continuously, and apply unit price appropriate to electricity saving propagation.

6. People’s Committees of provinces and central-affiliated cities shall:

- Set and add targets for economical and efficient use of energy to annual and periodic socio-economic development plans.

- Direct radio - television stations and affiliated communications authorities to propagate information on electricity saving in their provinces and cities continuously.

- Further inspect and strictly handle all violations against existing regulations on economical and efficient use of energy.

- Request local electricity authorities to cooperate with enterprises and organizations located in their provinces and cities in formulating electricity saving plans. Support People's Committees at all levels in compiling results of such plans.

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7. Ministries, central and local government authorities and People's Committees at all levels shall:

Provide guidelines for, inspect, supervise, approve and review public investment and procurement projects, thoroughly comply with regulations of the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 68/2011/QD-TTg dated December 12, 2011 promulgating list of permitted energy-saving equipment for state-funded regulatory bodies and units; and monitor power costs in recurrent expenditures of public entities based on electricity saving targets provided for in this Directive.  

8. Vietnam Electricity shall:

- Optimize operations of power plants and transmission and distribution grids to use primary energy efficiently and mitigate energy loss throughout the system. Mobilize capacity and electrical energy from hydropower plants, purchase from independent power plants and backup power supply of customers reasonably.

- Formulate and implement annual and periodic electricity saving programs, and report on such implementation to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

- Closely cooperate with National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, update weather and water supply forecasts, and proactively launch plans for efficient and economical use of water for  power generation.

- Take charge and cooperate with relevant regulatory bodies in researching, formulating and submitting financial mechanisms that allow Vietnam Electricity to include tasks of electricity saving facilitation in price to the commission for state capital management, which will propose these mechanisms to competent authorities for promulgation.

9. Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of Governmental agencies, chairpersons of People’s Committees of provinces and central-affiliated cities, chairperson of Board of Members and general director of Vietnam Electricity, heads of authorities/units, organizations and individuals engaging in the electricity industry and using electricity shall implement this Directive properly.

10. This Directive supersedes the Prime Minister’s Directive No. 34/CT-TTg dated August 07, 2017 on enhancement of electricity saving./.

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P.P. THE GOVERNMENT
THE PRIME MINISTER




Nguyen Xuan Phuc