Over 470 hydropower projects to be cut
The Ministry of Industry and Trade removed 471 hydropower plant projects from its power development plan after reviewing the plan in accordance with a National Assembly resolution passed in 2013. According to the ministry and the people’s committees of provinces nationwide, the projects are mostly small hydropower plants which require huge area of land, are difficult to connect to the national grid and fail to attract investors. Relevant authorities were asked to carefully examine and assess hydropower project proposals to reject unqualified ones, particularly those that fail to meet environmental and social requirements. In August 2016, the ministry asked the people’s committees in the five Central Highlands provinces of Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Gia Lai, Kon Tum and Lam Dong and neighbouring provinces, including Quang Ngai, Quang Nam, Phu Yen and Khanh Hoa, to review hydropower plant projects with regard to their impact on forest land.
