According to the Vietnam Energy Association (VEA), wind power can replace coal and gas thermal power, while being capable of generating power for 24 hours a day. Therefore, developing wind power, especially offshore wind projects, will be the key to replace fossil energy that is currently used the most. Vietnam has an estimated total wind capacity of 513,360 MW, the largest in Southeast Asia, six times higher than the expected capacity of the whole domestic electricity industry in 2020 and much larger than the potential of other countries in the region, such as Thailand (152,392 MW), Laos (182,252 MW) and Cambodia (26,000 MW). However, Vietnam has just put into operation several wind power projects with a total capacity of over 300 MW, still slower than the target of 800 MW by 2020 stated in the adjusted national electricity development planning for the 2011-2020 period (Power Development Master Plan VII) approved by the Government in 2016. At a recent Hanoi seminar discussing the planned Thang Long offshore wind power project, organised by the British Embassy in Vietnam, the VEA and Enterprize Energy Group, Ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Vietnam, Gareth Ward, stated that according to the Energy Sector Management Assistance Programme (ESMAP) report, Vietnam has offshore wind resources similar to the UK.
