Many electricity projects by EVN in Khanh Hoa require "clearance" for land acquisition

On October 15th, in Khanh Hoa province, a working session took place between a delegation from Vietnam Electricity (EVN) and the provincial People's Committee to discuss solutions for resolving obstacles in compensation and land clearance (C&LC) for electricity projects in the province.

The Provincial People's Committee of Khanh Hoa included Mr. Nguyen Tan Tuan - Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee; Mr. Nguyen Duc Tai - Standing Deputy Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee; Mr. Le Huu Hoang - Deputy Chairman of the provincial People's Committee, as well as leaders of departments and sectors.

Representing EVN was Mr. Tran Dinh Nhan - EVN's General Director; Mr. Nguyen Tai Anh - EVN's Deputy General Director; Mr. Nguyen Tuan Tung - Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Power Transmission Corporation (EVNNPT), Mr. Pham Le Phu - EVNNPT's General Director and Mr. Ngo Tan Cu - General Director of the Central Power Corporation.

Regarding the projects invested by the National Power Transmission Corporation, there were issues with location agreements for substations and route directions for the 500kV Van Phong substation and 220kV interconnection lines. There were also obstacles in obtaining land price approvals and forest land use conversion permits for the 220kV Cam Ranh Substation and interconnection lines and the 220kV Nha Trang - Thap Cham Transmission Line (passing through Nha Trang City).

For projects invested by the Central Power Corporation, the Solar Power Plant project in Central Vietnam had yet to be approved for additional land use plans to proceed with C&LC-related activities. The upgrading project for the 110kV Nha Trang - Dien Khanh - Suoi Dau Transmission Line has not reached agreement on the route direction.

Several 110kV projects had yet to receive land price approvals (for establishing and approving compensation and payment plans for affected households). These projects included the capacity improvement project for the 110kV Suoi Dau - Cam Ranh Transmission Line, the 110kV interconnection line behind the 220kV Cam Ranh Substation, the 110kV Cam Ranh Airport Substation and interconnection lines, and the capacity improvement project for the 110kV Nha Trang - Ninh Hoa Transmission Line.

During the working session, EVN CEO Tran Dinh Nhan stated that the feasibility study report for the 500kV Van Phong Substation and 220kV interconnection lines had not been submitted to the authorized agency for review due to the lack of consensus from the Khanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee regarding the substation location and the route direction of the 220kV transmission line. This could lead to delays in the project's progress compared to the schedule stipulated in the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) contract for the Van Phong 1 Thermal Power Plant. This poses a risk for EVN regarding incurring compensation costs for Van Phong Power Company Limited.

EVN leadership also requested the province to approve the land price for the 220kV Nha Trang - Thap Cham Transmission Line project and the 220kV Cam Ranh Substation and interconnection to establish and support compensation and payment plans for affected residents.

Regarding projects by the Central Power Corporation, EVN proposed that Khanh Hoa province consider and approve specific land prices based on the land price proposals submitted by the Cam Ranh City People's Committee, district-level People's Committees, and the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

During this working session, the Chairman of the provincial People's Committee of Khanh Hoa, Mr. Nguyen Tan Tuan, stated that the province had reached a consensus in principle regarding the location of the 500kV Van Phong Substation, which would be situated on a 6.6-hectare area within the land allocated for the Van Phong 1 Thermal Power Plant. EVNNPT (as the investor) and the Management Board of Central Power Projects were allowed to construct the 500kV Van Phong Substation after completing the procedures for land acquisition and leasing with the Van Phong Economic Zone Management Board and the relevant departments and agencies of Khanh Hoa province.

For other projects, the Chairman of the provincial People's Committee of Khanh Hoa requested that relevant departments and localities coordinate and guide EVN units to expedite the implementation of the projects to ensure national energy security. He also asked EVN units to proactively work with the provincial departments, sectors, and localities. They should promptly report to the province for resolution if there are any obstacles.