Conservation plan to help reduce energy costs

Vietnam can save at least 5 percent of its total energy needs by 2010 and up to 8 percent by 2015 if a new energy conservation programme is approved by the GovernmentThe programme was discussed at a seminar held last week by the HCM City Energy Conservation Centre (HCM-ECC) and Energy Efficiency and Conservation Office (EECO). Tran Viet Hoa, a representative from the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said the proposed National Programme on Energy Efficiency and Conservation would be submitted to the National Assembly for final approval in 2009. The programme, among other measures, encourages the use of energy-efficient equipment used in households and industry and the creation of new laws on industrial power use. Educating citizens about energy use, getting rid of low-efficiency electrical equipment, and encouraging power savings in construction and transportation are other objectives of the programme. Hoa said the use of energy-saving labels in products, which the government encouraged in 2007, had been underused by companies. In 2007, only three companies registered to attach labels on their products, he said. According to the EECO, the rate of electric power consumption per capita each year has increased dramatically, with 540kWh this year against 288 kWh in 2000. Nguyen Thanh Phong, of HCM City Electricity Company said since 2006 the city had encouraged citizens to buy compact flu orescent bulbs which have been offered at low prices to more than 490,000 families. By using such bulbs, monthly electric bills can bi cut by 15 percent. This year the company has sold 84,000 bulbs, 70 percent of its target. The campaign will continue until 2015. Vietnam’s energy demands have risen dramatically in recent years as its industrial sector has developed. The Vietnam Institute of Energy has predicted until 2020 the country would be capable of supplying 58-65 million tonnes of coal, 18-20 tonnes of oil and 83 billion kWh electric powers each year. But in 40 to 60 years fossil fuel sources in the country will be exhausted if the Government does not have specific strategies for energy conservation, according to experts. A survey by the Ministry of Industry and Trade and HCM –ECC found that Vietnam has great potential to save energy. The cement industry could save 50 percent of energy consumed, the steel industry 20 percent, and the garment sector 30 percent, the ministry said. Vietnam, however, uses more energy than other nations to make the same product, according to the ministry. In addition, Vietnamese companies’ energy costs are at least 1.5 times more than those in companies in Thailand, China and Malaysia. Nguyen Van Thuong, deputy general director of the Rang Dong Plastic Company, said energy expense represented 2 percent of the company’s product value. Thuong said the company could save 30-40 percent in energy costs by replacing outdated industrial