GE to develop Vietnamese grid for wind

VIETNAM: GE is to develop a new grid code for Vietnam in order to integrate up to 6GW of the country's burgeoning wind energy generation.

by Patrick Smith 6 December 2013

ERAV workers inspect grid infrastructure
The company has signed a contract with the Electricity Regulatory Authority of Vietnam (ERAV) based on a technical assistance grant to ERAV funded by the US Trade and Development Agency.

GE's energy consulting department will conduct a study of Vietnam's wind resources, power grid and planned wind power capacity additions to serve as the basis for a new grid code.

The code will then be developed to allow for the integration and interconnection of up to 6GW of new wind power.

The country has a goal of installing 6.2GW by 2030, with an interim 1GW target for 2020. The country only has a current capacity of 67MW, more than half of which was installed this year.

However, the pipeline looks much healthier, with several hundred megawatts due to come online in 2014.

The US Trade and Development Agency said it agreed the loan because it "may offer large export opportunities for US wind manufacturers in the next decade".