ACEN to build 4 wind farms in Vietnam

MANILA, Philippines — AC Energy Corp. (ACEN) is putting up four wind farms with a combined capacity of 440 megawatts (MW) in Vietnam this year, which will make the country its largest overseas market.

In a statement, ACEN said it leveraged on Vietnam’s strong wind resource potential, making a strategic pivot to jointly develop wind projects with its partners. The company is investing a total of $445 million in Vietnam.

This as Vietnam’s renewable energy sector remained vibrant despite the COVID-19 pandemic, fully supported by its government through policies such as the feed-in-tariff for wind power first introduced in 2018.

With its partners, the company is already operating 525 MW of renewables capacity from its existing solar and wind farms in the country.

ACEN and its partner. The Blue Circle, have commenced full swing construction for the Mui Ne wind farm, which has a 170-MW potential, located in the Binh Thuan province.

It is also developing with long-time partner UPC Renewables the Lac Hoa and Hoa Dong wind farms, with an aggregate capacity of 60 MW.

ACEN and its partner AMI Renewables have also commenced construction for the 252-MW Quang Binh wind farm, the largest onshore wind farm in Vietnam. The project will feature wind turbines at a hub- height of 145 meters to optimize the wind energy production.

So far, foundation works for 52 out of the 60 turbines are already completed with 14 turbines installed, while the project’s transmission lines are also completed and both substations energized.

Meanwhile, the 88-MW Ninh Thuan wind farm, ACEN’s latest development with the BIM Group, recently completed its foundation pour, with six turbines fully erected and installed. The wind farm’s transmission lines and substation are already completed and ready for energization.

“These project milestones happening in Vietnam all make for a really exciting period in our renewables expansion,” AC Energy International Patrice Clausse said.

“We are carving a niche for AC Energy through our landmark sustainable investments, establishing a solid track record in this country. We will continue to develop large-scale developments to support Vietnam’s goal to increase the share of renewables in their energy mix,” he said.

With four wind farms set to be operational within the year, and with the upcoming completion of the infusion of its international assets that will bring 1,408 MW of renewables capacity, ACEN’s renewable energy portfolio is set to reach 2,500 MW within the year, already in the halfway mark of its target to reach 5,000 MW by 2025.

Since 2017, ACEN has been pushing its renewables agenda to become a primary mover in Vietnam, whose impressive renewable energy growth remains fairly unaffected by the pandemic, and whose favourable tariff system makes it a priority market for the company.