Vietnam Urged to Reduce Pollution at China-built Thermal Power Project

Authorities in Vietnam’s central province of Binh Thuan have called for the government’s help to cope with pollution caused by a thermal power project which was built by China’s Shanghai Electric Group (SEC) under the engineering-procurement-construction (EPC) basis. In a document sent to the Ministry of Industry and Trade on April 4, areas surrounding the 1,244-MW Vinh Tan 2 power facility suffer severe pollution caused by the plant’s fly ash amounting 3,000 tons per day. Following the pollution, in April 2015, thousands of villagers in Tuy Phong district had taken to street to protest the state utility Vietnam Electricity (EVN)-invested project. They gathered to block a highway, causing a twenty-kilometer traffic jam for two days beginning on April 14, after dust from the plant covered their homes.  With an investment of $1.2 billion, Vinh Tan 2 is designed to generate 7.2 billion kWh of electricity per year. Vinh Tan 2 plant belongs to the Vinh Tan Thermal Power Center costing total $6.1 billion. Two of three plants at the center are built by Chinese companies. (Plo.vn April 5)