Giving comments on the draft Decision of the Prime Minister regulating the structure of retail electricity price tables, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) proposed to maintain the regulation of changing electricity price every 3 months, instead of shortening it to 2 months as recently proposed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

VCCI: Should maintain the mechanism of adjusting electricity prices once every 3 months.

VCCI said that the mechanism for adjusting the average electricity price in the year is based on quarterly data. That is, every 3 months, the electricity industry will synthesize data once. This quarterly data synthesis is also consistent with accounting practices.

Therefore, VCCI suggested that the drafting agency reconsider the time to adjust the average electricity price to at least 3 months to match the time of data synthesis.

Currently, the retail electricity price is implemented according to Decision 05/2024. The time between two electricity price adjustments is 3 months if the input costs are reviewed and checked, causing the price to increase by 3% or more.

Previously, according to the draft Decision of the Prime Minister regulating the structure of the retail electricity price table, the Ministry of Industry and Trade proposed to shorten the time to adjust the average retail electricity price from the current 3 months to 2 months.

Currently, according to Decision No. 05 of the Prime Minister on the mechanism for adjusting the average retail electricity price, the time for adjusting the electricity price is 3 months/time.

Explaining its proposal, the Ministry of Industry and Trade said that it is necessary to amend the principles on the level and time for adjusting the average electricity price to comply with the Electricity Law (amended) passed by the National Assembly at the end of November.

Along with that, the retail electricity price is reflected and adjusted promptly according to actual fluctuations in input parameters, compensating for reasonable and valid costs with reasonable profits to preserve and develop the business capital of enterprises in accordance with the socio-economic conditions of each period and the level of the competitive electricity market, and at the same time in accordance with the direction of the Government Standing Committee on avoiding jerkiness in the process of adjusting the electricity price, which can be adjusted many times a year.

On the other hand, currently, the input parameters in calculating electricity prices fluctuate quite significantly in a short period of time and need to be reflected promptly to limit the impact of input parameters on the adjustment of electricity prices.

Therefore, in the Draft Decree, the Ministry of Industry and Trade proposed that when the average electricity price increases by 2% or more compared to the current average electricity price, the electricity price is allowed to be adjusted upward. The minimum time for adjusting the average electricity price is 2 months from the most recent electricity price adjustment.

Regarding this proposal, at a regular press conference on January 7, 2025, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Sinh Nhat Tan affirmed that the development of the above Decree is to implement the amended Electricity Law that was just passed by the National Assembly at the end of November 2024 and to amend it in the direction of shortening the adjustment cycle, following the market.

"The Ministry assigned the Electricity Regulatory Authority to study and clarify the impact of the 2-month versus 3-month electricity price management plan. How to find the most reasonable direction possible," said Mr. Tan.