Vietnam Electricity (EVN) has already paid five per cent of the total debt amount of VND500 billion in 2011, to the Government Forest Environment Service Fund, stated Quach Dai Ninh, chief officer of the Forestry Department on Monday.
During the first three months of 2012, the group had paid VND30 billion of the debt amount. Hoa Binh Hydropower Plant paid VND17 billion and Da Nhim Plant paid VND13 billion.
According to Mr. Ninh, the group had sent a dispatch to the Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung to waver the debt.
However, the Prime Minister asked EVN in March to make the payment immediately, which would help forestry projects in remote and mountainous areas.
Vietnam had implemented a pilot project to charge for usage of hydropower plants by Forest Environment Services in 2008. The payment of each company would be calculated based on total electricity output that the company trades a year.
Early in 2011, the Government had instructed all hydropower plants to pay the fee.