Vietnam will ramp up coal imports in the 2025-2035 period as coal consumption is forecast to reach its peak between 2030 and 2035, according to a draft plan for the Vietnamese coal industry development recently released by the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

 

Statistics from the ministry indicated that the domestic consumption of coal surged from 27.8 million tons in 2011 to 53.5 million tons in 2021. Coal is mainly used for power production, the local media reported.

 

The country has only two main coal producers, the Vietnam National Coal and Mineral Industries Group and the Dong Bac Corporation.

 

According to the ministry, the country’s demand for primary energy from coal will increase during the 2030-2035 period, but will gradually decrease as many coal-fired thermal power plants will be shut down after 2035 in line with the country’s energy development roadmap.

 

Vietnam will consume 94-97 million tons of coal in 2025. The figure will spike to 125-127 million tons in 2030 and fall to 73-76 million tons in 2045.

 

Meanwhile, the local coal production will reach a mere 45-47 million tons per year in the 2025-2035 period and descend to 42-44 million tons per year in 2045 due to limited natural resources of coal, poor exploitation of technology and a shortage of workers.

 

As such, Vietnam is expected to import 50-83 million tons of coal each year between 2025 and 2035 and some 44 million tons in 2045.