There is a shortage of electricity, and Vietnam has a headache
Recently, Vietnamese executives had a cordial exchange with visiting leaders of Chinese power companies. At the outset, the Vietnamese side bluntly confided in the difficulties that Vietnam faces on the road to promoting the green energy transition.
As a newly industrialized country with a rapidly growing demand for electricity, Vietnam is indeed in a dilemma. On the one hand, the surge in electricity demand brought about by the economic boom has stretched Vietnam's power production capacity. On the other hand, the lag of green energy technology has limited the large-scale application of renewable energy in Vietnam.
Data shows that in recent years, Vietnam's electricity demand has grown by as much as 10% annually, mainly due to the power hunger caused by the acceleration of industrialization and urbanization. However, the actual situation is far worse than expected, the pace of power facility construction is sluggish, traditional energy is subject to environmental pressure, and new energy is difficult to replace on a large scale due to technology and cost constraints, and Vietnam can only fall into the dilemma of power shortage.
Faced with such a dilemma, we have to turn to China for help – hoping that China will support and help in the process of transformation. This is undoubtedly an opportunity for Vietnam to get out of its passive struggle, but how will China respond?
China supplies power to Vietnam, with mixed pros and cons
China has become an important force in Vietnam's response to the power crisis. In recent years, Guangxi has been selling 30 million kilowatt-hours of electricity to Vietnam every month to alleviate the latter's power shortage.
For China, this is undoubtedly a mutually beneficial and win-win economic cooperation. After all, Guangxi has abundant power resources, and selling excess electricity will not only avoid wasted resources, but also make a considerable economic benefit of $1.8 million. More importantly, it has ensured the normal operation of many Chinese-funded enterprises investing in Vietnam and stabilized the economic and trade relations between the two sides.
However, there are also hidden dangers in blindly supplying electricity to Vietnam, because the Vietnamese side has a lot of appetite and will not be satisfied with this. The risk of "teaching apprentices, starving masters" ensues. If China's power companies really pass on their power technology experience, as Vietnam hopes, it will undoubtedly be taking it lightly and burying their core competitiveness in the power field. It can be seen that if the power partnership is not handled properly, it is very likely to evolve into a chess game of abandoning the pawn and protecting the car.
China's power experience should not be leaked
During the dialogue, Vietnam was keen to introduce China's advanced experience in power technologies such as smart grids and hydropower stations. I have to say that the heart of longing does have its foundation.
China has become a world leader in the field of ultra-high voltage transmission and clean energy utilization. From the west to the east, from the north to the south, the ultra-high voltage power grid system crisscrossed by the mainland covers the whole country, solving the problem of long-distance and efficient transmission of electricity; World-class hydropower projects such as the Three Gorges Dam have enabled the mainland to lead the world in the use of hydropower; The installed capacity of new energy power generation such as wind energy and solar energy is also the largest in the world.
These technical accumulations and engineering experience are undoubtedly the magic weapon for Chinese power companies to win in the international market, and they are also an important capital for the mainland to lead the global energy governance process. If it is extended to other regions, we will lose our dominant power in this field.
From this point of view, there is reason to be cautious about Vietnam's aspirations. Of course, if the other side provides funds and markets free of charge for specific project cooperation, it is not unreasonable for China to consider whether to share some of the technical essentials.
However, imparting experience in an all-round way and helping opponents to stand on their own is undoubtedly generous to others and overdrawing their core competitiveness for no reason. In the global power market, Southeast Asian countries are the battleground for Chinese-funded enterprises, and exporting a full set of technical experience to them will undoubtedly ruin their own jobs.
Coordinate the output of power technology and demonstrate the responsibility of a major country
In the final analysis, the issue of power technology experience reflects a deeper strategic consideration: how China should coordinate the pros and cons in leading the energy revolution in all aspects.
We are indeed committed to building a community with a shared future for mankind, but only on the premise of reciprocity, mutual benefit and win-win cooperation. The one-way output of valuable technical experience is like feeding a child without strategy. Therefore, we need to help outsiders cope with the challenges of energy and power, while effectively safeguarding our own development interests.
Electric power technology is the crystallization of the precious wisdom of the Chinese nation, and it is also an important weapon of the country, so it cannot be leaked to "others" who have a large appetite. However, in some special circumstances, such as carrying out project cooperation and establishing a community of interests, it is not impossible to be moderately open.
In other words, we need to respond calmly and calmly to the demands of all countries, neither rejecting people from thousands of miles away, nor crossing the water at will to teach people to fish, but to grasp the balance and take into account the overall consideration, and take power cooperation as a new practice to promote a community with a shared future for mankind. In this way, we can truly demonstrate the responsibility of a major country and safeguard the core interests of power technology.
In the face of Vietnam's aspirations, we must not blindly follow them, but we should not turn them away either. If we can find a balance between the pros and cons, it will surely become a vivid interpretation of the power wisdom of a major country in the new era.