HCM City (VNS/VNA) - Hundreds ofhouseholds in Ho Chi Minh City have been benefiting from homegrown solar powersystems.

The practice follows the Ministry of Trade andInvestment’s decree on developing grid-connected solar power projects whichcame into effect in October 2017.  

It encouraged citizens to produce solar power athome to cover their domestic electricity demand and contribute to the nationalpower grid.

The method has proved to be a worthy investmentas it helps reduce electricity costs for residents.

About 860 families in the city have installedsolar panels on their rooftops and registered to sell about 1 million kWh ofelectricity to the Electricity of Vietnam Group (EVN).

Nguyen Thi Thu Tham from Tan Phu district spent 50million VND (2,150 USD) installing eight solar panels on her rooftop, whichproduce 300 kwH of electricity per month.

Ever since they got the panels installed, herfamily felt more comfortable using electricity-consuming appliances such asair-conditioners, fans and washing machines, Tham said.

“With seven members in our family, ourelectricity bill used to reach 1.5 million VND (65 USD) per month,” she said.“Now we only pay 500,000-700,000 VND (22-30 USD) per month thanks to the solarpanels.”

Nguyen Dinh Hien in Tan Binh district got 12solar panels installed, which helps him save about 1 million VND onhis electricity bill each month. “I plan to get more panels as I still havespace on my rooftop,” he said.

Residents are encouraged to sell the solar powerthey produce to the national power grid. However, a payment rate and tax ratehave not been worked out by the city.

Nguyen Van Ly, Deputy Director of the HCM CityPower Corporation, said: “We have not been able to figure out a paymentmechanism between the seller and the buyer.

“We keep records of the amount of power thatcitizens have contributed and we have a fixed electricity retail price. But wehaven’t been able to pay them due to some problems with the tax procedures.”

The company is waiting for instructions from theMinistries of Industry and Trade, and Finance on these matters, he added.

Nguyen Tan Hung, the company’s communityrelations manager, said the company will work to provide a free two-wayelectric meter for each household that installed a solar power system. Thispiece of equipment helps record the amount of electricity they transfer to thenational power grid.

“We came up with this policy as an incentive toencourage residents, but haven’t been able to install the equipment in allhouseholds since there are too many of them all in the city,” he said.

Companies are also taking advantage of thisopportunity to offer solar panel installation services with good incentives.

SolarBK, a Vietnamese provider of renewableenergy solutions, is collaborating with the BIDV Insurance Corporation (BIC) tooffer power output warranty packages for systems installed by July 31, 2019.

It also partners with the Bank for Investmentand Development of Vietnam (BIDV) to offer clients preferential packages for12-36 month loans, with a loan approval rate of 70 percent.

Research from SolarBK shows that due to thedevelopment of technology, a solar power system’s performance can be improvedby 6.4 percent without having to increase the number of panels.

Considering the technological advancements thatwill take place in the coming years, even households with limited rooftop spacecan have a solar power system installed, a representative from the companysaid.-VNS/VNA