From sunshine and wind to the "capital" of renewable energy

The sunny and windy highlands are now opening up great opportunities for renewable energy. Wind, solar and biomass projects are turning this area into a strategic resource...

The sunny and windy highlands are now opening up great opportunities for renewable energy. Wind, solar and biomass power projects are turning this area into a strategic resource, both lighting up the village and creating sustainable economic value.

Outstanding potential

On the once barren corn hills, Mrs. H'Mai's land in Ea H'leo ( Dak Lak ) has now become a place to build wind turbines. The presence of renewable energy provides her with a stable income and brings light to the village. For the Ede people, wind turbines not only generate electricity, but also light up the hope of a more fulfilling and less arduous life.

In Chu Prong ( Gia Lai ), the challenge comes from the region's main product. After each coffee harvest season, thousands of tons of husks and chaff are piled up, causing pollution and waste. Worried about this reality, Mr. Nguyen Van Hung, owner of a processing factory, said that if by-products are used to generate electricity, people can both reduce processing costs and contribute to adding clean energy to the Central Highlands.

From the story of Ms. H'Mai in Dak Lak to the concerns of Mr. Hung in Gia Lai, it can be seen that the renewable energy potential in the Central Highlands does not only come from large wind and solar power projects but also exists in daily life. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, this region has the potential to develop wind power of about 15,000 MW, accounting for nearly 1/3 of the country, with an average wind speed of 7-7.5 m/s, stable all year round. At the same time, the Central Highlands also has the highest solar radiation in Vietnam, 1,900-2,200 hours of sunshine per year, favorable for the construction of large-scale solar power farms.

Not only wind and sunshine, the Central Highlands also owns a huge “biomass material warehouse” from agriculture. Gia Lai and Dak Lak alone discharge millions of tons of by-products from coffee, pepper, sugarcane, and cashew every year. This is an abundant source of raw materials to produce biomass electricity or biogas, helping to reduce pollution and increase the value of the agricultural product chain.

The potentials from wind, sunlight and biomass have been realized through many typical projects such as Ea Nam Wind Power Plant (Dak Lak) with a total investment of over 16,500 billion VND, output of about 1.1 billion kWh/year, helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and Serepok solar power cluster (Buon Don) providing about 150 million kWh/year, collecting nearly 300 billion VND for the budget.

According to Dr. Nguyen Anh Tuan, former Director of the Renewable Energy Center, Institute of Energy, Ministry of Industry and Trade, if in the past, this land was often mentioned for electricity from hydropower plants, now wind, sunlight and agricultural by-products are gradually becoming strategic energy sources. If planned and invested synchronously, this area can completely become a green energy center not only of Vietnam but also of the whole region.

Light for a sustainable future

To realize its potential, the Central Highlands needs a synchronous policy and infrastructure ecosystem. Dr. Nguyen Anh Tuan believes that integrating renewable energy into land, agricultural and infrastructure planning is a prerequisite to avoid the situation where projects develop massively but lack transmission connections. Currently, the biggest limitation is the power grid: many projects have to "lie still" because there are no lines to release capacity, so it is necessary to mobilize social capital soon, encourage the private sector and Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) to invest.

At the same time, the electricity price mechanism is also vital. Practice shows that many wind and solar power projects in the Central Highlands are facing difficulties because there is no clear price framework, making it impossible for investors to calculate long-term efficiency. A transparent and stable price policy through FIT (fixed electricity price for a certain period of time) and DPPA (bidding or direct power purchase agreement) will be the "key" for domestic and foreign capital to boldly flow into this field.

In particular, people need to become the subject of energy transition. When people participate from land leasing, service provision, by-product collection to project operation and supervision, the benefits do not stop at electricity, but also at trust and community responsibility. Human resources are also an indispensable "link". Local universities and research institutes need to cooperate with businesses to train engineers and skilled workers in the field of green energy.

Thanks to its natural advantages and the joint efforts of the State, businesses and people, the Central Highlands has the opportunity to become the “capital of renewable energy”. If exploited in the right direction, this land will not only provide clean electricity for the whole country but also turn barren corn hills and piles of wasted coffee husks into light for a sustainable future.

The Central Highlands can also exploit the energy model associated with agriculture. By-products of coffee, pepper, cashew, etc., if collected and processed properly, can become valuable biomass sources. This is not only a solution to increase income for farmers and reduce environmental pollution, but also opens up a new value chain for the regional economy.

Gia Hung

Source: https://baolamdong.vn/tu-nang-gio-den-thu-phu-nang-luong-tai-tao-389428.html