Authorities in a province in Vietnam are considering turning almost 24.5 hectares of forest into empty land for the construction of a thermal power plant.

According to a proposal the People’s Committee of Ha Tinh Province put forward to the provincial People’s Council, the 24.42 hectares of forest affected by the Vung Ang 2 BOT thermal power plant project spreads over Ky Anh Town’s Ky Loi Commune, and Ky Trinh and Ky Thinh Wards.

The forest area consists of 9.95 hectares of protection forest, 9.31 hectares of production forest, and 5.16 hectares of non-planning forest in the north-central province.

After undergoing site clearance, it will be dedicated to building a slag pipeline, slag treatment yard, cooling water discharge pipe, entrance, cooling water system, pumping station, and equipment complex area in the Vung Ang 2 BOT thermal power plant project.

The conversion is consistent with the land use plan for 2021 of Ky Anh Town approved by the provincial People’s Committee, according to the proposal.

The thermal power plant project, covering a total of nearly 150 hectares in Ky Anh Town, has been implemented by Vung Ang 2 Thermal Power JSC at a cost of about US$2.2 billion, under a build-operate-transfer (BOT) contract.

It was evaluated by the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations on July 30, 2010.

The site clearance of the project started in 2011.

Its average annual power output is expected to surpass 8.5 GWh.

The construction of the thermal power plant is meant to meet the increasing demand of Vietnam’s power system after 2015, ensure power supply to different Vietnamese regions, improve the reliability of that power supply, and reduce losses and production costs.

It is also expected to create more jobs for local and national construction enterprises, especially construction material firms.

It is estimated that the construction of the project has required about 4,000 - 5,000 workers.

Once put into operation, the plant will employ about 286 people, pay an additional tax sum of about VND300 billion ($13 million) a year to the local budget, and significantly promote the socio-economic development of the locality.

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