Phạm Trọng Thực, deputy director general of the Industrial Safety Technique and Environmental Agency under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, talks to Công Thương (Trade and Commerce) newspaper on the national plan to develop coal-fired power plants

What is the current state of Vietnamese coal power plants?

Việt Nam has 25 coal power plants operating commercially. Their gas emissions, solid industrial waste and environmental issues have been closely monitored in accordance with Vietnamese standards issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE).

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The post Coal-fired power plant development must come with environmental protection first appeared on Open Development Mekong.

The Federation of Thai Industries has agreed with the plan to develop a coal-fired power plant in Krabi, saying the delay or cancellation of the project would lead to insufficient power supply that could cut the gross regional product in the South by at least 1%. Energy policymakers will make a final decision Friday about whether the government will proceed with the plan to build a 800-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Krabi. The project has been delayed for about two years because of strong opposition from local residents and non-governmental organisations worried about the plant’s potential adverse effect on the environment, which could damage the tourism industry, which accounts for some 17% of the country’s GDP. 

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The post FTI backs Krabi coal-fired plant first appeared on Open Development Mekong.

Village leaders in Sumberejo, East Java, once had plans to entice travelers to their coastal town. Tourist facilities were planned for Ndaki Beach where the waves of the Indian Ocean crash upon this Indonesian island. Nearby Bawur Beach was also seen as having tourism potential. Now, locals say, the construction of a 630-megawatt coal-fired power plant has killed these development aspirations: Bawur Beach, just west of the plant, is blocked by the facility, while Ndaki Beach has changed dramatically. “We had a beautiful beach at Ndaki, but because of the power plant, the waves got focused towards one point at the beach and now we have erosion there,” Suyono, a community leader from Sumberejo told Mongabay-Indonesia.

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A coal-fired power plant in southern Shan State that was shut down two years ago due to residents’ complaints may be reopening, despite the opposition of the local community, villagers say. They are already accusing local officials of breaking their promises. Test operations at the plant, in Tigyit village, Pinlaung township, were carried out on October 22, apparently in advance of a resumption of activity. The state government says the reopening of the plant depends on the results of the tests. Villager U Sein Thaung said on October 24 that the government and the plant’s management had failed to inform residents about the tests. He said he and his neighbours still object to its reopening. “The company should have told us they were going to run tests, but they don’t care about us. And the Shan State government told us they wouldn’t allow the plant to reopen if we objected. It looks like they broke their promise.”

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The post Residents fear restart of coal power plant first appeared on Open Development Mekong.