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February 17 and 18, 2023. Mr. Rémy Rioux, Director General of AFD Group, Chairman of the International Development Finance Club (IDFC) and of the Finance in Common Summit (FICS) initiative, visited Vietnam as part of the preparations for the Summit on the New Global Financial Deal announced by President Emmanuel Macron at the last G20 Summit in Bali, which will be held in June 2023 in Paris and for which he is leading the working group on sustainable infrastructure. At the heart of this visit, on February 17, 2023, Mr. Rémy Rioux met with Mr. Duong Quang Thanh, Chairman of the Council of Members of the EVN group, for an exchange on the issue of the Just Energy Transition (JETP). On 18 February 2023, Mr Rémy Rioux also visited the construction site of the Hoa Binh hydropower plant extension project, one of the emblematic projects financed by AFD in favour of the energy transition.
At COP26 in Glasgow, Vietnam committed to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 and phasing out coal by 2040. In line with this international commitment, the country formalised a Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) in December 2022 with a group of international partners, including France.
This partnership will mobilise USD 15.5 billion in public and private funding over the next three to five years. Public financial contributions, including those of AFD, made available to the group of international partners are in the order of USD 7.75 billion. In return, Vietnam has committed to reducing annual emissions from the electricity sector by 30% and to limiting the use of fossil fuels as much as possible by promoting the development of renewable energies with quantifiable objectives.
EVN Group is playing a central role in Vietnam's energy transition. In response to Vietnam's commitments, the group is building its energy transition roadmap, adapting its development strategy and investing in clean energy. AFD, as a trusted and long-term partner, is supporting EVN in this transformation.
Within the framework of this JETP partnership, AFD is leading a consortium of European donors in Team Europe format (EIB, KfW), together with Japanese partners (JICA), to appraise the 1200MW Bac Ai pumped storage hydroelectric power plant project, an emblematic project for the country's energy transition.
At the meeting with AFD, President Duong Quang Thanh shared with Managing Director Rémy Rioux the strategic orientations of the EVN Group, the challenges and experiences of the Group in the process of energy transition. EVN's exchanges and sharing of experience highlighted potential areas of collaboration with AFD to meet the challenges of the energy transition.
In addition to existing and future concessional financing for EVN's investment projects, AFD is available to EVN to share its experience and French expertise. During Mr Rioux's visit, the two groups' directors officially launched a technical cooperation programme between EVN and EDF with financial support from AFD of around one million euros. This programme will help EVN to develop its energy transition roadmap and support its innovation projects.
The two leaders then jointly visited the Hoa Binh hydropower plant expansion project (+480MW), which showed EVN's significant achievements in developing its largest generation assets. In addition to the additional renewable generation capacity, the project will greatly contribute to improving the functioning of the Vietnamese power system in the context of the increasing integration of renewable energy.
At the end of his visit, Mr Rémy Rioux, AFD Chief Executive Officer, said: "Vietnam has a strong ambition in terms of energy and low-carbon transition and I am honoured and proud of the partnership we have built in this field with Electricité du Vietnam (EVN) for over 20 years. In discussions with Mr. Duong Quang Thanh and during our visit to the Hoa Binh hydropower plant, I confirmed our commitment to provide the expertise and financing that Vietnam needs under the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP). The experience of Vietnam, EVN and its public banks will be very useful in preparing the Summit for a new financial pact announced by the President of the French Republic and to be held in Paris in June.”
Mr. Duong Quang Thanh, Chairman of the EVN Members Council said: "I deeply thank Mr. Rémy Rioux, Director General of AFD and the French delegation, for his visit and his special attention to the partnership relationship with EVN. On our side, EVN is committed to implement the energy transition process to meet the government's so-called "net-zero" commitments, therefore JETP has become an important strategic focus of the group to achieve the above mentioned commitments. EVN highly appreciates AFD's support over the past 20 years, and wishes to continue and develop this partnership with AFD in the coming years, especially in the framework of the JETP that AFD and other donors are initiating at EVN level".
CONTACTS :
Mme Nguyen Thi Thanh An
Head of the Climate and Energy Unit
AFD Vietnam
Tel : +84 24 38 23 67 64
Email: nguyentta@afd.fr
Mme Luong Thi An
Deputy Director General
International Relations Department
VIETNAM ELECTRICITY
Tel: + 84 24 66946075
Email: anlt@evn.com.vn