DFDL Vietnam Partner and Managing Director Jérôme Buzenet and Senior Legal Advisor Andrea Wilson recently chaired a panel discussion “Outlook of a New Era – Opportunities and Challenges of Solar Power Development in Vietnam”. as part of the Vietnam Solar Energy Summit 2017 held at the Rex Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City on 26 – 27 October. The lively and informative event attracted well over 100 attendees, all of whom were thoroughly enlightened and engaged, as attested to by the amount of note-taking throughout the discussion.
Among the various topics discussed, key issues of concern raised included the challenges and difficulties that developers regularly have to face – such as PPAs, licenses, geographic issues, construction permits, rooftops, and financing, to name but a few. Jerome, Andrea along with the four other panelists acquitted themselves remarkably in sharing their expertise, viewpoints, and experience with the assembled guests. Ultimately, in spite of persistent difficulties and unwieldy legislative obstacles, Solar Power itself continues to be very highly regarded, with its enormous potential widely recognized by power sector experts in terms of future power generation in Vietnam. This event and the discussions which followed have greatly interested and inspired global investors and it can be expected that investment will continue to accelerate into this promising sector in Vietnam.
In April 2017, the Prime Minister officially approved the issuance of Decision No. 11/2017/QD-TTg on the Development of Solar Power Projects in Vietnam, followed by Circular No. 16/2017/TT-BCT of the Ministry of Industry and Trade on the Development of Solar Power Projects and the Power Purchase Agreement Form in September 2017. With a regulatory framework now in place, the solar energy sector in Vietnam is set to grow, provided that the challenges in developing and financing these projects can be overcome.
According to Circular 19, grid-connected solar projects must achieve commercial operation before June 2019 in order to benefit from a feed-in tariff of 9.35 US cents per kWh (kilowatt hour). This imposes a challenging timeframe on solar power developers, given the time it takes to secure land, sign a power purchase agreement with EVN, reach financial close, and begin construction in earnest. Developers have been considerably active of late in seeking capable local partners and working through the licensing process in order to develop solar energy project under Vietnam’s new regulatory regime.
The Vietnam Solar Energy Summit 2017 provides a platform to better understand the opportunities and pitfalls of the solar sector in Vietnam, as well as an opportunity to connect and share ideas with local partners and market leaders in this sector.
In collaboration with Neoventure Corporation, we presented the seminar, “Vietnam Solar Energy Summit 2017”. It took place on 26-27 October 2017 at the Rex Hotel Saigon, 141 Nguyen Hue Blvd, Ho Chi Minh City.
Jérôme Buzenet – DFDL Partner and Managing Director, Vietnam, along with Andrea Wilson – Senior Legal Advisor of DFDL Vietnam, moderated a panel discussion at the event on “Outlook of New Era – Opportunities and Challenges of Solar Power Development in Vietnam” topic on 27 October.
Over 300 participants, 40 speakers and 40 exhibitors attended.
Day 1 | 26 October
- Plenary Keynote Speech: Overview of Vietnam Solar Power Market.
- Shaping the New Era of Solar Power Development in the Region.
- Financing Methods for Vietnam Solar Development and Other Supporting Mechanisms.
Day 2 | 27 October
- Experience Sharing from Leading Utilities and Private Sector Perspectives.
12.10 pm – 1:00 pm Panel Discussion “Outlook of New Era – Opportunities and Challenges of Solar Power Development in Vietnam”
Moderators : DFDL Jérôme Buzenet and Andrea Wilson - Shaping the New Era of Solar Power Development in the Region
Date: 26 – 27 October 2017
Time:
26 October 7.30 am – 6.00 pm
27 October 8.00 am – 5.20 pm
Venue: Rex Hotel Saigon, 141 Nguyen Hue Blvd, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
For more information, please contact: Ayano Otani at Ayano.Otani@dfdl.com
DFDL Speakers:
Jérôme qualified as a lawyer and studied law at La Sorbonne and Oxford University. Before joining DFDL in 2012 to head their Vietnam offices, Jérôme was with Freshfields in Hanoi for over six years and Linklaters in Paris. His practice is focused on M&A, private equity and investment funds, in Vietnam and the rest of the Mekong region. Having been permanently based in Vietnam since 2004, Jérôme also advises on projects and finance matters. He is recognized as a leading practitioner by each of Chambers Asia Pacific, Legal 500 and IFLR 1000.
