Incentives for investment in self-consumption rooftop solar power

The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) has submitted a draft to the Government for approval of a mechanism to promote the development of self-consumption rooftop solar power systems.

Accordingly, project owners investing in and utilizing rooftop solar power systems would be exempt from power operation licenses and electricity business registration certificates, and prioritized for allocation of funds, entitled to tax exemption and reduction, and provided with soft loans.
 

Worthy of note, rooftop solar power systems would not be subject to any limits on installed capacity. However, these systems must meet requirements on electrical safety, construction safety, environmental protection and fire prevention and fighting.

In order to realize such incentives, ministries, sectors and localities would have to issue guidelines to simplify procedures for construction and specify fire safety requirements, environmental protection and electrical safety for houses and buildings installed with rooftop solar power systems.

The State Bank of Vietnam would direct commercial banks to reduce lending rates or provide a preferential lending package for owners of rooftop solar power projects with priority given to those in northern localities. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Finance would allocate budget funds to support the installation of self-consumption rooftop solar power systems and give options for tax and charge exemption and reduction.

Such incentives are designed to gradually implement the National Power Development Master Plan (Plan VIII) which says by 2030, half of office buildings and houses will use self-consumption rooftop solar power systems.

(Source: Vietnam Law & Legal Forum)