Thai Binh Province taps offshore wind power potential

Great potential

With territorial waters totaling about 3,160sq.km, Thai Binh has the potential to develop offshore wind power with capacity exceeding 10,000MW.

In 2014, the provincial Department of Industry and Trade guided the installation of a 60m high anemometer in Vanh Islet (Nam Phu Commune, Tien Hai District). Wind measurements obtained from July 2014 to September 2015 show that at the height of 60m, wind blowing at a speed of 4-7m per second accounted for 53.8 percent of the time. This speed enables a wind turbine to generate electricity at one third of its rated capacity. Wind blowing at a speed of 8-13m per second accounted for about 31.1 percent of the time, and this speed enables a wind turbine to generate electricity at its full rated capacity. These measurements prove that Thai Binh is a suitable place to build wind farms in coastal areas. Theoretically, the province can build wind power plants with a capacity of 850MW to generate nearly 2.9 million MWh of electricity per year.

On April 25, 2016, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) issued Decision 1596/QD-BCT approving Thai Binh Province’s wind power development plan until 2020, with a vision to 2030. Via this decision, the MoIT allowed the province to implement the Tien Hai wind power project in the three communes of Nam Thinh, Nam Hung and Nam Phu. Covering an area of about 1,280ha, the project was designed to have a total capacity of 70MW, implemented in two stages (40MW in the first stage and 30MW in the second stage). Under the plan, the capacity of wind power plants in the province is expected to reach about 40MW by 2025, with the annual output reaching about 108 million kWh.

The availability of unused land in the area planned for wind power development in Thai Binh is a favorable condition for investors. The province currently has the 110kV Tien Hai transformer station in Dong Co Commune and a 110kV transmission line. Under its power development plan, Thai Binh will build the 110kV Hong Hung and Dong Hoang transformer stations and 110kV transmission lines from the Thai Binh Thermal Power Center to the three transformer stations. This infrastructure will facilitate connecting the Tien Hai wind power project to the national grid.

The Thai Binh Economic Zone is being developed along with investment in a number of industrial zones and major trade and service projects. The province’s demand for commercial electricity by 2030 is forecast to increase by 2.2 times or nearly 6,800GWh. Wind farms can also be associated with coastal tourist sites to attract visitors.

Attractive investment destination

Many domestic and foreign investors have chosen Thai Binh to be their investment destination. The Thai Binh Provincial Department of Industry and Trade said that some of them have expressed their wish to invest in wind power projects. These include the Hai Ly Construction Investment Consulting Group Joint Stock Company, the Hung Hai Group Joint Stock Company, the Technology Development of Construction Joint Stock Company, and a joint-name venture of the T&T Group and the Orsted Group (Denmark).

In 2022, the Thai Binh Provincial People’s Committee worked with the joint-name venture of the T&T Group and the Orsted Group on an offshore wind power project. The project will be implemented in three stages and is expected to start operations by 2030. In the first stage, the project will have a capacity of 1,000MW, with total investment of US$2.5 billion, and generate 3.5 billion kWh of electricity per year.

The Provincial People’s Committee has also granted a license for the Pondera Group (the Netherlands) to study a wind power project at two locations in the Thai Binh Economic Zone (Tien Hai and Thai Thuy Districts). With a capacity of 700MW, the project will be implemented in two stages. In the first stage, the project will be carried out onshore with a capacity of 154MW, and in the second stage offshore with 546MW.

Ngo Dong Hai, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, said that Thai Binh is pursuing the goal of becoming an energy hub of northern Vietnam, focusing on developing gas-fired power plants, wind power and thermal power. The province will continue creating favorable conditions for investors to survey suitable places for wind power development.

Wind power projects in Thai Binh Province are believed to contribute to renewable energy resources, meeting the growing demand for electricity consumption in production and people’s life, and to create a sustainable source of income for the local budget.