A consortium consisting of one Vietnamese and three South Korean firms has officially started building a $2.3 billion LNG-to-power project in Vietnam’s central province of Quang Tri.
LNG importing giant and terminal operator Kogas, power firm Kospo, as well as energy solutions provider Hanwha are the developers from South Korea. Vietnamese investor and project developer T&T Group is the only firm from the Southeast Asian country.
The consortium kicked off the construction of the technical component for the first phase of the Hai Lang LNG-to-power project on January 15, according to a statement by the local government.
T&T Group said in October that the partners had received investment approval for the development.
As part of the first phase of the LNG power plant, the partners will build a 1,500 MW facility with an expected start of commercial operations in 2026-27.
Also, the project includes an import terminal capable of receiving about 1.5 million tonnes of LNG per year.
The partners previously did not reveal any additional details regarding the LNG part of the project or the power purchase agreement.
Besides the first phase, the consortium plans to expand the facility with 3,000 MW in the future.
If built, both of the phases could cost about $4.8 billion.
Vietnam has still not started importing LNG. However, the government of Vietnam previously said that the country would start importing LNG in 2022 in order to meet the country’s growing power demand.
There are several LNG-to-power developments and LNG plants under development in Vietnam.
PetroVietnam Gas, a unit of state-owned PetroVietnam, said last year it had planned to import the first cargo via its new Thi Vai LNG terminal in 2022.