Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Assmart energy plays an important role in smart urban areas, Vietnam plansto develop smarter, cleaner, greener and more sustainable energy resourcesfor its cities, said experts at a recent summit in Hanoi.

Nguyen Cao Luc, Vice Chairmanof the Government Office said: “Smart city development is the right directionand a closed smart energy development plays a very important role in thedevelopment.”

Attending the ASEAN SmartCities Network High-Level Forum 2020 last week in Hanoi, Luc added: “Citiesconsume 70 percent of global energy and are also responsible for 70 percent ofpollutant emissions. Therefore, moving towards a smarter, cleaner, greener andmore sustainable city depends a lot on how we use energy in the cities.”

Per Resolution 55-NQ/ W onthe national energy development up to 2045, economical and efficient use ofenergy and environmental protection must be considered an important national policyand the responsibility of all of society, said the deputy chairman.

Dang Hoang An, Deputy Ministerof Industry and Trade, said: “By 2030, half of Vietnam's population will livein urban areas, which can cause huge problems for urban management economicstructure, infrastructure and environmental protection.”

According to the Ministryof Construction, there are 833 urban centres including two special cities, 20grade 1 cities and the rest grade 3 or grade 4 centres.

“We need to find solutions tosolve the above problems to create a higher standard of living for its people,”An said:

“To have enough energy forcities, Vietnam needs smart energy as it could save more and bettercontrol energy supply and demand," he added.

Smart energy investment -long-term benefits

According to the World EnergyOrganisation, ASEAN exports some primary energies, but it will become animporter of energy in a very short time due to its rising population.

As a production country withmore and more industrial zones and a possible importing country, Ansaid Vietnam had to use energy efficiently.

John Rockhold, head of Powerand Energy Working Group, Vietnam Business Forum, mentioned green energyefficiency in urban areas and economic zones.

“Investing in smart energydevelopment will be expensive at first, but it will bring benefits in the longrun. Specifically, industrial zones with a smart energy environment willincrease competition and attract more investment to Vietnam," he said.

“At the same time, it will helpbusinesses save costs through renewable energy, help raise GDP, improve thebusiness environment, and meet higher needs of the middle classes,"Rockhold added.

He said renewable energygeneration from solar rooftop projects on the roofs of tenants’ factories ofindustrial zones are attractive to both foreign and Vietnamese businesses.

As cleaner smart energy is ademand now by major foreign firms to meet their own corporate carbon reductionpolicies, greener industrial zones will attract more quality investors to Vietnam.

Also at the session, Do NguyenHung, Deputy General Director of the Vietnam - Cambodia - Myanmar EnergyDepartment from Schneider, suggested smart grids through digitaltransformation, accompanied by smart devices, would be the trend in Vietnamwith higher and higher technology.

Hung said energy managementsoftware based on cloud computing could help better manage and save electricityin Vietnam.

According to experts, theurbanisation process of Vietnam is taking place strongly and the room for energyinvestment is still very big.

According to the tentative2021-2030 energy plan proposed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade lastmonth, Vietnam would need 133.3 billion USD over the next decade to build newpower plants and expanding the grid.

The plan also stated demand forelectricity would remain high with annual growth rates of 8.6 percent in2021-2025 and 7.2 percent in 2026-2030./.