WORK ON THE CONSTRUCTION of two new hydroelectric power plants started in Lat and Phito communes in the Vietnamese Central Highlands province of Lam Dong in mid-December 2003, according to reports from the Vietnamese News Agency (VNA).

The Da Dang plant in Lat commune will have a generating capacity of 14,000kW, while the Dachomo plant in Phito commune will have a capacity of 8000kW. They will annually generate around 78.4MkWh and 38.7MkWh of electricity respectively.

The two plants will be constructed by the Transport Projects Construction Corporation No.5 at a total cost of US$30.6M by June 2006. The electricity generated will be sold to Electricity of Vietnam (EVN).

Meanwhile, EVN signed an agreement with Japan’s Nissho Iwai and Toshiba in mid-December 2003 to purchase equipment for the Dai Ninh hydroelectric power plant in the coastal province of Binh Thuan, according to the VNA.

Under the US$45M agreement, the two Japanese companies will design, manufacture, install and commission two generating units of 153MW each, plus transformers and other equipment, by December 2007.