AJU, a business publication from the Republic of Korea (RoK), has recently published an article revealing that the board of the Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) has plans to purchase a 40% stake in Vung Ang 2, a 1,200MW coal-fired power plant being constructed in Ha Tinh province. 

Vung Ang 1 thermal power plant (Photo: VNA)

This comes after KEPCO endorsed investment in a project involving firms from the RoK and Japan to build a coal-fired power plant in the nation, therefore overriding concerns regarding profitability and environmental contamination. Moving ahead with the project, the state power company aims to complete construction by January, 2025.

Investment into the coal-fired plant will see Samsung C&T, a key unit of Samsung Group, and Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction, participate together in design, procurement, and construction efforts.

At first, the US$2.2 billion project involved CLP, an electric company based in Hong Kong, along with the Japanese enterprise Mitsubishi. When CLP indicated their plans to withdraw from the project, KEPCO decided to purchase their 40% stake.

The annual growth rate of electricity demand in the nation is currently at a faster rate in comparison to other Southeast Asian countries.

Indeed, electricity from fossil fuels still play a key role in the nation’s total power capacity. Due to this, environmental activists have expressed concerns about pollution caused by the Vung Ang 1 thermal power plant, which has a designed capacity of 1,200MW and has been built to meet the power demand of an industrial zone.

KEPCO, who have also invested in a coal-fired power station project in Indonesia, said it would use new technology to minimise carbon emissions and install additional eco-friendly facilities for the Vung Ang 2 power station.