A heatwave gripping Vietnam has already placed immense pressure on the national power grid, the country’s industry ministry said, adding that the problem could get worse as the El Nino weather pattern is forecast to return from July.
Temperatures in northern Vietnam have hovered around 40ºC for days. Residents in the capital, Hanoi, have reported sleepless nights caused by power cuts in several districts, as abnormal electricity demand strained the grid.
There is substantial uncertainty over its strength, but the US Climate Prediction Center has said there is an 82 per cent probability of El Nino, a warming of the ocean surface that raises the risk of droughts and heatwaves, developing by July.
“We experienced power cuts three times last night, each lasting at least 40 minutes,” Nguyen Nhat Quang, a 35-year-old Hanoi resident, told Reuters by phone. “If the situation continues this evening, we’ll need to rent a hotel so my kids can sleep without interruption.”
State utility EVN said on its official Facebook account that there are no planned power cuts and that it would ensure stable power supply. It did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on power outages.
The industry ministry said electricity consumption has hit new daily peaks since May 23. Demand has surged late in the evening, when the power system comes under the greatest strain as solar power is no longer available and low water levels at many small hydropower reservoirs limit generation capacity.
Vietnam relies heavily on coal-fired power plants and hydropower dams for electricity, making the power system vulnerable to rising fuel costs and low reservoir levels.
EVN has urged households and businesses to reduce power consumption, especially in the northern regions where supplies are more at risk.
