Vietnam expects sufficient electricity this year, with pressure rising over the next two years
Vietnam Electricity says it can ensure sufficient power throughout 2026 despite three periods of extreme heat and record electricity demand. The Ministry of Industry and Trade expects demand to keep rising in 2027 and 2028, while new baseload power sources have yet to begin operating.
Nguyễn Tài Anh, deputy general director of Vietnam Electricity (EVN), said at the National Energy Security Forum on November 10 that the country had avoided rolling blackouts despite three periods of extreme heat and record electricity demand this year. He said the power system was expected to ensure sufficient supply throughout 2026.
Vietnam’s National Energy Security Report, released for the first time at the forum, showed that nationwide peak electricity demand reached 57,537 MW on June 24. Electricity generation and imports rose 9.4% year on year in the first nine months and are expected to reach 356.2 billion kWh for the full year, up more than 10%. Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyễn Việt Sơn said prolonged heat had driven up electricity use, while conflict in the Middle East had disrupted fuel supplies and increased import costs.
Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyễn Việt Sơn speaks at the National Energy Security Forum on November 10.（VietVance）
Electricity demand in the north rose 14.7% year on year in May and 17.5% in June. Nguyễn Tài Anh said the region’s peak demand had approached the safe operating limit for voltage stability. EVN responded by stockpiling fuel, optimizing power plant output, increasing electricity imports and installing battery energy storage systems.
Looking ahead to 2027 and 2028, Nguyễn Việt Sơn expects electricity demand to rise by about 10% from its 2026 level, while new baseload power sources will not be ready to operate in time. The National Power System and Electricity Market Operation Company expects peak demand in the north in 2027 to exceed this year’s high of 30,248 MW. Transmission lines from central to northern Vietnam are already operating close to their 5,000–5,200 MW limit. If the 500 kV substations in Bắc Ninh, Thái Bình and Hải Phòng are delayed, supplying power during summer evening peaks will become more difficult.
EVN plans to continue investing in power generation and energy storage projects and to advance procedures to adjust the investment plan for the Ninh Thuận 1 nuclear power project. It estimates that the related projects will require about 830 trillion Vietnamese dong, averaging about 166 trillion dong a year. The company has called for broader financing options for key power projects and closer monitoring of projects undertaken by other investors.
Source: VietVance
