EVN deputy general director Vo Quang Lam said changes in electricity consumption have occurred after 10 years of operation. Rush hours now last from 1pm to 3.30pm and 9pm-11pm instead of 9am-11am.

Lam has called on large electricity consumers and manufacturing factories to consider adjusting production shifts to avoid rush hours.

The information was released at a webinar on sharing responsibility for supplying electricity in the 2024 dry season held by VietNamNet on April 8.

Tran Minh Dung, deputy CEO of Northern Power Corporation, has said that if clients do not cooperate with EVN in electricity supply regulation, "it will be difficult to overcome the hot weather this year".

According to Dung, his company adjusts additional charge for non-commercial purpose, which means that clients join the program on a voluntary basis. In return, clients can enjoy some benefits. For example, they are the first to be notified of the power supply resumption in a power outage; and are included on the list of priority customers for electricity supply.

Also, they can enjoy free MBA maintenance and other customer care services, depending on the actual conditions of the power company.

“The biggest difficulty we met when persuading clients to cooperate with us is the lack of a policy encouraging enough for people and businesses who join electricity saving programs,” Dung said.

“There are also no sanctions applied to customers who don’t observe the law on using energy economically and effectively,” he added.

If enterprises organize production shifts in rush hours, they will have to pay more for electricity bills. If they organize shifts in off-peak hours at night. they will have to re-organize production and pay more to workers.

At the webinar, Doan Van Manh, deputy CEO of Fuyu Precision Component Ltd Co in Bac Giang, shared his experience about how to use electricity effectively.

First, the company takes full advantage of natural light. Second, it has changed production shifts. The time it uses electricity the most is at night. Third, it has adjusted the temperature of air conditioners. Fourth, it operates 15 electricity generation machines (15,000 KVA each) at times of serious electricity shortages.

Deputy Director of the Bac Giang Industry and Trade Department Nguyen Duc Hoan said local authorities have persuaded enterprises to participate in the additional charge adjustment program. To date, 200 enterprises have committed to implement the program.

Luong Bang