LookAtVietnam – The huge wastage in power use in production sectors has to be curbed if the country is to avoid facing severe energy shortages over the next 10 years, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do Huu Hao has warned.

Tourist visit the Ecolodge village in Lao Cai province. Conservation helps ensure energy security and contribute to environmental protection.

The performance of generators was 10 per cent lower compared with other developing countries and the use of boilers was 20 per cent under the world average rate, he said.

Generally, the waste of energy used for industrial production in the country was 1.7 times higher than other countries.

Demand for power would increase annually by 15 to 20 per cent until 2020, and with the country still needing to import fuel at the high prices that is forecast for that time, a huge burden would be placed on the economy, Hao said.

Hao said the development of potential power sources to replace oil and gas, which was being exhausted rapidly, had made no progress.

He highlighted the importance of laws requiring energy savings, stressing they did not aim to stop Viet Nam from importing energy, but to save energy used in production and daily life.

Dang Vu Minh, director of the Science, Technology and Environment Committee under the National Assembly said the laws were essential for the country at present and in the future.

“Proper use of energy helps insure energy security for the country, contributing to environmental protection and sustainable development of the economy,” said Professor Vu Dinh Cu, former chairman of the National Assembly Committee for Science, Technology and Environment.

A draft law, which is being prepared by the committee and the Ministry of Industry and Trade, would be submitted to the National Assembly in October and put into effect next year, Hao said.

The law is expected to affect every energy use by every single stakeholder, but it will focus on the use of power for traffic lights, manufacturing and international trading activities, as well as fuel use by transportation vehicles – the highest consumers of fuel in the country.

According to a study conducted by the ministry, many huge energy-consuming sectors have the potential of saving 20 per cent of their current consumption.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News