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Nhon Trach 3 and 4, Vietnam’s first LNG-fired power plants, were inaugurated on Sunday and are scheduled for commercial operations in early 2026.

Located in the southern province of Dong Nai, the two plants have combined investment capital of about $1.4 billion and total capacity of 1,624 MW.

Petrovietnam's subsidiary PV Power is the investor, while a consortium of Lilama and Samsung C&T is the EPC contractor.

Once operating at full capacity, they are designed to generate more than 9 billion kWh of electricity annually, providing a large-scale baseload power source for the national grid, particularly in southern Vietnam.

The plants are equipped with cutting-edge technology, featuring U.S. firm GE’s 9HA.02 gas turbines - currently among the most advanced in the world in terms of technology, capacity, and efficiency. Thanks to this technology, the facilities are expected to achieve an efficiency of 62-64%, among the highest levels today.

The 9HA.02 technology meets stringent emissions standards and allows flexible fuel conversion, from LNG to co-firing up to 50% hydrogen, with the potential to transition to 100% hydrogen in the future.

According to Petrovietnam, the project is a model for the LNG power plants that the corporation plans to develop in the future, laying the foundation for an era of modern gas-fired power in Vietnam.

This is the first power project in Vietnam to successfully secure international loans (over $1 billion) without a government guarantee. The implementation process faced numerous challenges due to the lack of a specific mechanism for LNG power generation, obstacles in negotiating the power purchase agreement (PPA), and environmental commitments.

"Committing to a minimum output guarantee for gas-fired power projects is a major challenge because LNG prices depend on the international market," said Nguyen Duy Giang, deputy general director of PV Power.

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh described Nhon Trach 3 and 4 as "a particularly important piece” in strengthening national energy security and supporting Vietnam’s rapid and sustainable development in the new period.

Drawing on international experience, the Prime Minister noted that countries achieving fast and sustainable growth all possess strong, stable, and modern energy infrastructure. “The power sector must move one step ahead, paving the way for industrialization and enhancing the competitiveness of both the economy and the nation,” he said.

Vietnam’s peak electricity demand currently stands at about 54,500 MW and is increasing by an estimated 6,500-8,200 MW each year. This underscores the urgent need for reliable power supplies, especially as the country accelerates strategic breakthroughs in high technology, semiconductor manufacturing, large-scale national data centers, digital transformation, green transition, and major infrastructure projects such as high-speed and urban rail systems.

The cabinet leader emphasized that with annual output exceeding 9 billion kWh, the commissioning of Vietnam’s first LNG power complex has laid a solid foundation for the development of a gas-fired power market, providing a proactive and stable electricity source.

He highlighted the project’s standout features, including its low investment cost, the largest scale, the most advanced technology, the highest capacity, the shortest EPC contractor selection period (11 months), and the most competitive commercial electricity price.

Under the adjusted Power Development Plan VIII, Vietnam aims to add nearly 37,500 MW of new gas-fired power capacity, with LNG accounting for around 60%. However, many projects are facing challenges in securing output offtake agreements to ensure stable cash flows, as well as in planning long-term fuel supply volumes and prices.

To achieve this goal, the Prime Minister requested ministries and agencies to review and remove procedural bottlenecks, particularly by finalizing policies for LNG-fired power plant operations and the LNG power supply chain.

He also urged enterprises to prepare plans and engage early in negotiations with partners on spot LNG imports to reduce price risks, lower input costs, and enhance project efficiency.

The inaugural flight to the new airport is scheduled for December 19.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh made a trip to inspect the construction site of the Long Thanh International Airport in southern Dong Nai province on December 14.

This is the 9th inspection trip made by the PM to the construction site.

The PM was quoted by the Vietnam News Agency as calling on teams to accelerate the construction of the new airport to make it ready for the first flight on December 19 and commercial operations in the first half of 2026.

PM Chinh commended units, contractors, and especially 15,000 experts, engineers, and workers, for speeding up the project’s construction to meet the schedule.

He expressed satisfaction that the first sub-project is nearing completion and entering its final phase, expected to be ready by December 19, while the second is also in the finishing stage, with equipment being installed to serve the first flight in line with the overall project schedule.

Highlighting the critical importance of the third sub-project, which covers essential airport facilities, the PM noted that only three of 15 packages have been completed while 12 remain under construction. He urged accelerating the completion of key components - particularly runways, connecting roads, passenger terminals, and taxiways - to ensure construction is basically completed for the inaugural flight on December 19.

The leader also inspected the fourth sub-project, which covers ground service facilities. He showed satisfaction with investors’ active efforts to prepare for the first phase’s operations.

After inspecting the construction site, PM Chinh had a working session with representatives of ministries, sectors, and units to review tasks for the project following Party General Secretary To Lam’s directions a month ago.

The PM praised the units’ dedication and urged round-the-clock work, including nights and weekends, to speed up progress while ensuring quality, safety, and environmental standards for the project.

He called on the military, particularly Military Region 7 and local units, to provide support, and urged the police to strengthen security and order in the construction site.

He requested strictly implementing the guidance of the Party chief and the Government directions to advance the airport progress and develop an aviation economic hub in Dong Nai. He assigned specific responsibilities to ministries, agencies, localities, and enterprises, expressing his belief that with continued determination and efforts, the airport and its supporting infrastructure will meet international standards.

The same day afternoon, the Government leader inspected the progress of roads leading to the Long Thanh International Airport.

Covering more than 5,000 ha in Long Thanh commune, the airport has a total investment of over $16 billion, divided into three phases. Construction of the first phase, estimated to cost $5.4 billion, began in 2020. Once operational, it is expected to handle 25 million passengers and 1.2 million tons of cargo each year (first phase).

During the 2025–2026 period, commercial banks will allocate around VNĐ100 trillion, equivalent to about 20 per cent of the programme’s total scale, to provide preferential loans for projects in power infrastructure,

HÀ NỘI The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) announced that it had issued Official Dispatch No 10825/NHNN-TD on Friday, providing guidance on the implementation of a credit programme of VNĐ500 trillion or US$20 billion for investment in power infrastructure, transport and strategic technologies. The guidance is also based on feedback from relevant ministries and the participation registrations submitted by commercial banks.

According to the SBV, the programme will be implemented in two phases. During the 2025–2026 period, commercial banks will allocate around VNĐ100 trillion, equivalent to about 20 per cent of the programme’s total scale, to provide preferential loans for projects in power infrastructure, transport and strategic technologies. In the 2027–2030 phase, the remaining capital will be gradually disbursed, ensuring that lending does not exceed each bank’s committed amount.

Eligible borrowers are enterprises seeking long-term loans to invest in nationally important or key projects in the power, transport and strategic technology sectors, as identified by relevant ministries. For power projects, the eligible list follows the Ministry of Industry and Trade's Official Dispatch No 9238/BCT-KHTC dated November 21, 2025. Transport projects must be included in the list under Official Dispatch No 14394/BXD-KHTC dated December 2, 2025, from the Ministry of Construction.

For strategic technologies, eligible projects include those producing items listed in the “National Strategic Technology and Strategic Technology Products List” approved under Decision No 1131/QĐ-TTg dated June 12, 2025, and certified by the Ministry of Science and Technology.

Preferential interest rates under the programme will be at least 1–1.5 percentage points per year lower than the average lending rates applied by the same bank for loans of similar tenors. Lending will follow existing mechanisms, with no changes to standard credit procedures.

The programme will remain in effect until the end of 2030 or until total disbursements reach VNĐ500 trillion, whichever comes first. Preferential interest rates will apply for a minimum of two years from each disbursement date, under individual loan agreements, but will not exceed the agreed loan tenor. Banks will stop applying preferential rates to loans disbursed after December 31, 2030, or once their registered funding allocation under the programme has been fully used.

After the preferential period ends, lending rates will be negotiated between banks and borrowers in accordance with legal regulations and clearly specified, or with a clear calculation method outlined, in the loan agreement. If a bank determines that a borrower has used funds for improper purposes, the preferential interest rate will be terminated, and the borrower will be required to repay the full amount of interest previously subsidised, calculated from the disbursement date to the termination date.

Loans under the programme will be financed entirely from banks’ own mobilised capital. Participating banks are responsible for credit appraisal, lending decisions and associated risks, and must comply with regulations on loan classification, provisioning and risk management. The SBV has also tasked its functional departments with monitoring implementation, addressing emerging difficulties, and conducting inspections and supervision of programme lending activities.