Capital allocation must be sped up to complete the construction of Son La and Lai Chau Hydroelectric Plants alongside the damming of the Da River, the State Steering Committee decided at a provincial meeting yesterday.
The two final turbines (No 5 and 6) of the former factory were expected to become operational during April and August 2012.
The damming of the Da River was one of the most important priorities at present and was expected to start at the end of next year’s first quarter.
To date, dam designing, land clearance and resettlement of local residents for the Lai Chau project were reported to be on schedule, according to Project Management Board Director Nguyen Hong Ha.
Meanwhile, slow capital allocation has been a major factor in effective project implementation, causing disagreement between Electricity of Viet Nam (EVN) and commercial banks in terms of interest rates and loans.
To improve the situation, meetings among the State Bank of Viet Nam (SBV), EVN and commercial banks were held to reach consensus on interest rates associated to the Son La Hydroelectric Plant, according to a SBV representative.
EVN Director Pham Le Thanh said that disbursement would be made every three months towards the Son La project, adding that bidding related to the Lai Chau project would be sped up.
In addition, the Ministry of Finance ordered the Viet Nam Investment and Development Bank to provide enough investment capital towards the projects while sufficiently compensating resettled residents. Around 65 per cent of resettlement payments have been made to date.
At the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai praised the efforts of investors in implementing the project on schedule during difficult economic times.
Efforts should be focused on allocating land to residents to help them recover production, he said.
Hai also called for sped up capital allocation and salary payments ahead of Tet (New Year holiday).
The Son La Hydroelectric Plant, with more than VND42.47 trillion (US$2.03 billion) invested in it, started operating its first turbine last year while construction on the Lai Chau Hydroelectric Plant, located in Muong Te District’s Nam Hang Commune, started in January.
