HCM CITY — More than 270 businesses and households in HCM City have installed solar power panels on roofs with a total capacity of  about 3,600KWp, according to the HCM City Power Corp under Electricity of Việt Nam (EVN HCM City).

Of the figure, electricity from 245 solar power systems has been sold to the national electricity grid.

Phạm Quốc Bảo, deputy general director of EVN HCM City, said the city has great potential to develop solar power systems connected to the grid, and that residents and enterprises should promote the use of solar power.

The corporation has targeted a total installed solar power capacity of about 5MWp this year, he said.

According to figures from the Ministry of Industry and Trade, HCM City has the highest level of solar radiation in the country with about 300 sunny days each year.

The average solar radiation is 1,581KWh/m2 per year, equivalent to 4.3KWh/m2 per day, in the city.

The maximum potential of solar power from high-rise apartment buildings and other households could be up to 1,000MWp. This would help ensure power supply in the city, particularly during the dry season.

The corporation has developed incentives to encourage residents and enterprises install solar power systems.

The installation of a 1KWp solar power system on an area of about 8sq.m costs about VNĐ22-30 million (US$966-1,318).

A household only needs an area of 32sq.m to install a 4KWp solar power system instead of paying about VNĐ1 million ($44) per month (excluding tax) for using a monthly average of about 500KWh of electricity.

Solar power sales at the Electricity of Việt Nam took effect in October 2017.

Accordingly, all output produced by solar power projects operating before June 30, 2019 will be purchased for VNĐ2,086 (9.3 US cents) per KWh (excluding VAT) for 20 years.

However, there are still some bottlenecks in purchasing solar power. For example, residents who sell electricity cannot issue value-added tax invoices. — VNS