Suoi Tan 5.5 MW Hydropower plant
Project Entity
The proposed project is being developed by Suoi Tan Hydropower Join Stock Company, a company set up solely for the purpose of developing the community's hydropower plant. The project entity has no previous experience in the construction or operation of hydropower projects.
Purpose of the Project Activity
The purpose of the proposed project activity is to construct and operate a small scale run-of-river hydropower plant consisting of two cascades with a total installed capacity of 5.5 MW including Suoi Tan cascade one (2.5 MW) and Suoi Tan cascade two (3 MW). The Suoi Tan 5.5 MW small scale run-of-river hydropower project, hereafter is referred to as “the project activity”, is located on the Suoi Tan stream, which is a tributary of the Da River, in Chieng Khoa Commune, Moc Chau District, Son La Provincein the north of Vietnam. The project is a run-of-river type which will utilise neither an accumulation reservoir nor a run-of-river reservoir for water storage during times of low rain fall or water flow. Whilst this means a very environmentally friendly solution, it leads to decreased profitability as no electricity can be produced during times of low rain fall or water flow.
By producing power from a renewable source, the project will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by displacing electricity generated by more traditional methods (combustion of fossil fuels) which lead to anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses (the baseline scenario).
Considering the anticipated annual operation of the plant, the project will in total generate 24,680 MWh/pa and therefore lead to emission reductions in the order of 12,803tCO2/pa during the first crediting period.
During the deployment process of the project, the project proponents have sought the views of direct and indirect stakeholders in the project activity with a view to assessing the contribution of the hydropower plant to sustainable development. Further, the project is compliant with local and national legislation with respect to hydropower development, and the sustainable development needs of the country and locality. For example, currently in the location of the project activity, only 70% of households have access to a reliable electricity supply.
By producing power from a renewable source, the project will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by displacing electricity generated by more traditional methods (combustion of fossil fuels) which lead to anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses (the baseline scenario).
Considering the anticipated annual operation of the plant, the project will in total generate 24,680 MWh/pa and therefore lead to emission reductions in the order of 12,803tCO2/pa during the first crediting period.
During the deployment process of the project, the project proponents have sought the views of direct and indirect stakeholders in the project activity with a view to assessing the contribution of the hydropower plant to sustainable development. Further, the project is compliant with local and national legislation with respect to hydropower development, and the sustainable development needs of the country and locality. For example, currently in the location of the project activity, only 70% of households have access to a reliable electricity supply.
Contribution to Sustainable Development
In order to quantify the sustainable development contribution of this project two approaches have been taken: the project owner has agreed to voluntarily donate 2.5% of the CER revenue from the project towards sustainable development initiatives and this PDD has employed a multi-attributive utility tool to provide a quantitative assessment of the project's contribution to sustainable development against the baseline scenario[1]. There now follows an outline of the environmental, social and technological benefits that the proposed project activity will deliver at both the local and national level.
Environmental Benefits
The proposed project activity will reduce reliance on fossil fuel supplies which are not only exhaustible, but whose utilisation result in anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. This will help protect the environment at both the global and local level. The preservation of non-renewable resources is achieved by promoting the exploitation and use of renewable resources and technologies; thousands tonnes of fossil fuel will be saved in the first seven year crediting period. In terms of emission reductions, the proposed project activity is estimated to be approximately 89,838 tCO2 during the first crediting period.
As the project employs neither an accumulation nor run-of-river type of reservoir, it can be considered a relatively more environmentally sensitive project than other comparable projects which require significant deforestation, excavation and flooding.
Social Benefits
The project activity will contribute toward meeting the increasing demand for electricity in Vietnam. In 2007, Vietnam suffered a shortage of 1,400MW of power (10% less than required) at peak hours and it is predicted that this situation will continue until 2020. This has an affect at the local level in terms of peoples’ quality of life, and at the national level as it inhibits economic growth and discourages foreign investment.
The proposed project activity will enhance the national and local economy, especially the Moc Chau district and Son La province where the project is located. Moc Chau district is located in a poor mountainous province whose size is 2,025 km2 and has a population of 127,050 people. Gross domestic product per capita was US$170 in the year 2000. In the Chieng Khoa Commune where the proposed project activity is to be developed, there are 920 households, of which only 642 (70%) households have access to electricity and 93 households are very poor (2004). When the proposed project comes to operation, households that did not previously have access to a consistent electricity supply will have and the proposed project activity will also contribute taxes to the local government’s budget.
The proposed project activity provides further social benefits to the local community in a number of other ways. One of the more significant contributions is the creation of many jobs; 125 persons for cascade 1, and 275 persons for cascade 2 during the construction phase. During operation, 50 jobs will be created
As a result, this will bring training and development opportunitiesto the local population that otherwise would not have occurred. In addition, the project proponent has agreed to fund many activities for the local community by voluntarily agreeing to commit a minimum of 2.5% of the revenue from the sale of Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) for local sustainable development programmes such as those described belowincluding:
· Building facilities and infrastructure for local communities i.e. children’s playground, recreational area;
· Educational assistances for employees or their dependents by providing scholarships;
· Funds for schools to buy reference books, upgrading libraries, and constructing bus-stops;
· Sponsorship of local community events such as sports activities and traditional festivals
· The construction of several kilometres of new roads
Technological Benefits
The project will ensure technology transfer as many modern items of plant such as turbines, generators and governors are imported from China and Japan in order to implement the project. Further, the project also uses many items of equipment manufactured in Vietnam. Hence, the project will accelerate the deployment of renewable energy technologies in Vietnam. The transfer of technology will also lead to the transfer of skills to the workforce who operate the plant.
Environmental Benefits
The proposed project activity will reduce reliance on fossil fuel supplies which are not only exhaustible, but whose utilisation result in anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. This will help protect the environment at both the global and local level. The preservation of non-renewable resources is achieved by promoting the exploitation and use of renewable resources and technologies; thousands tonnes of fossil fuel will be saved in the first seven year crediting period. In terms of emission reductions, the proposed project activity is estimated to be approximately 89,838 tCO2 during the first crediting period.
As the project employs neither an accumulation nor run-of-river type of reservoir, it can be considered a relatively more environmentally sensitive project than other comparable projects which require significant deforestation, excavation and flooding.
Social Benefits
The project activity will contribute toward meeting the increasing demand for electricity in Vietnam. In 2007, Vietnam suffered a shortage of 1,400MW of power (10% less than required) at peak hours and it is predicted that this situation will continue until 2020. This has an affect at the local level in terms of peoples’ quality of life, and at the national level as it inhibits economic growth and discourages foreign investment.
The proposed project activity will enhance the national and local economy, especially the Moc Chau district and Son La province where the project is located. Moc Chau district is located in a poor mountainous province whose size is 2,025 km2 and has a population of 127,050 people. Gross domestic product per capita was US$170 in the year 2000. In the Chieng Khoa Commune where the proposed project activity is to be developed, there are 920 households, of which only 642 (70%) households have access to electricity and 93 households are very poor (2004). When the proposed project comes to operation, households that did not previously have access to a consistent electricity supply will have and the proposed project activity will also contribute taxes to the local government’s budget.
The proposed project activity provides further social benefits to the local community in a number of other ways. One of the more significant contributions is the creation of many jobs; 125 persons for cascade 1, and 275 persons for cascade 2 during the construction phase. During operation, 50 jobs will be created
As a result, this will bring training and development opportunitiesto the local population that otherwise would not have occurred. In addition, the project proponent has agreed to fund many activities for the local community by voluntarily agreeing to commit a minimum of 2.5% of the revenue from the sale of Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) for local sustainable development programmes such as those described belowincluding:
· Building facilities and infrastructure for local communities i.e. children’s playground, recreational area;
· Educational assistances for employees or their dependents by providing scholarships;
· Funds for schools to buy reference books, upgrading libraries, and constructing bus-stops;
· Sponsorship of local community events such as sports activities and traditional festivals
· The construction of several kilometres of new roads
Technological Benefits
The project will ensure technology transfer as many modern items of plant such as turbines, generators and governors are imported from China and Japan in order to implement the project. Further, the project also uses many items of equipment manufactured in Vietnam. Hence, the project will accelerate the deployment of renewable energy technologies in Vietnam. The transfer of technology will also lead to the transfer of skills to the workforce who operate the plant.
Details of physical location
The proposed project is located on the right bankin the middle of the Suoi Tan Stream which belongs to a grade-1 branch of the right side of the Da River. It originates from Phu San Van area in the Moc Chau highlands at an altitude of 950m and runs into the Da River at the Hoa Binh reservoir. Its watershed area is about 316 km2 with an average altitude of 756 m. Its length is approximately 36 km with incline degrees at the project site ranging from 20-72%. The nearest residential area is Na Ten village (2 km away) for cascade one and Chieng Le village (1.5 km away) for cascade two. The nearest major town and city are Moc Chau town (approx 20 km northern west) and Hoa Binh city (120km) respectively.
The co-ordinates of each cascadeare as follows:
· Cascade 1: latitude of 20o50'36"N to 20o50'28"N and longitude of 104o49'17"E to 104o50'23”E;
· Cascade 2: latitude of 20o50’38”N to 20o50’15’’ N and longitude of 104o50’07’’ to 104o50’37’’
Lcation of the project:
The co-ordinates of each cascadeare as follows:
· Cascade 1: latitude of 20o50'36"N to 20o50'28"N and longitude of 104o49'17"E to 104o50'23”E;
· Cascade 2: latitude of 20o50’38”N to 20o50’15’’ N and longitude of 104o50’07’’ to 104o50’37’’
Lcation of the project:
Type and category(ies) and technology/measure of project:
As the project's total installed capacity is 5.5 MW (below the 15MW CDM large scale project threshold) and employs a renewable source of energy (hydropower) to be exported to a national grid system.
Technology Description
The total installed capacity of the project is 5.5MW with total expected annual net electricity generation of 24,680 MWh per annum. The produced electricity will be delivered to the national grid via a 2.05 km new 35kVtransmission line at the outgoing feeder-electricity column number 31/28/4 of Chieng Khoa branch in the route 374E 17.1.The main construction structures of the project consist of intake point with gate, forebay/pressure tank, penstock and powerhouse containing turbines, generators and transformer as shown in Figure A3. There is no reservoir associated with the construction of the project, neither accumulation nor run-of-river type. The specific items of equipment employed are listed in
Table below
The technologies detailed in Table, along with the governors, valves, exciters and associated istallation and commissioning services are imported from China and Japan. They therefore contribute to the sustainable development aspect of the project via technology transfer.
Technology Description
The total installed capacity of the project is 5.5MW with total expected annual net electricity generation of 24,680 MWh per annum. The produced electricity will be delivered to the national grid via a 2.05 km new 35kVtransmission line at the outgoing feeder-electricity column number 31/28/4 of Chieng Khoa branch in the route 374E 17.1.The main construction structures of the project consist of intake point with gate, forebay/pressure tank, penstock and powerhouse containing turbines, generators and transformer as shown in Figure A3. There is no reservoir associated with the construction of the project, neither accumulation nor run-of-river type. The specific items of equipment employed are listed in
Table below
The technologies detailed in Table, along with the governors, valves, exciters and associated istallation and commissioning services are imported from China and Japan. They therefore contribute to the sustainable development aspect of the project via technology transfer.