The delegation of the European Union to Vietnam said the bloc has allocated 346 million euros (US$368 million) in non-refundable aid to support the development of sustainable energy in Vietnam between 2014 and 2020.
Sustainable energy has been selected as one of the two focal areas of the EU Development Cooperation in Vietnam for the 2014 – 2020 period, Ambassador Franz Jessen, head of the delegation, said at a workshop jointly held by the delegation and the Ministry of Industry and Trade in Hanoi on Wednesday.
The program aims to improve energy generation and consumption in Vietnam, increase the share of clean and renewable energy in the energy mix, and improve access to reliable and sustainable energy services by the people, according to Hoang Quoc Vuong, deputy minister of industry and trade.
“Although Vietnam is now an energy exporter, it will become a net energy importer in the near future with estimated imports of 17 million tons of coal, equivalent to 31 percent of its energy resources as of 2020,” Vuong said.
“Significant investments, energy market reforms are essential to meet the demand in the future, and to maintain energy access for all at affordable prices, reducing carbon emission and the sector’s environmental impacts.”
Ambassador Jessen said the EU aims at having a direct and results-oriented sectoral dialogue with the Vietnamese government.
“We intend to become a strategic partner and facilitate a smooth and effective implementation of an energy support program, with sustainable benefits to the people of Vietnam.”
Đăng ký: VietNam News