VietNamNet Bridge - On the morning of February 6, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung participated in the inauguration ceremony of the 110KV submarine cable system from Ha Tien city to Phu Quoc Island in the southern province of Kien Giang, connecting the country's largest island to the national grid.



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Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and the Permanent Member of the Party Central Committee Secretariat Le Hong Anh at the ceremony.

 

 


Speaking at the ceremony, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung congratulated the government and people of Phu Quoc island district and the power industry for successfully implementing this large-scale project.

The system, the longest in Southeast Asia, stretches 57.33km from Thuan Yen village in Ha Tien town to Phu Quoc district’s Ham Ninh village. It includes two 110/22kV-40MVA transformers in Ha Tien and Phu Quoc.

The system’s VND2.3 trillion (US$110 million) budget came from a World Bank loan and corresponding capital supplied by Electricity of Vietnam’s Southern Power Corporation (EVN SPC).

The Italian contractor Prysmian completed the installation after two months of construction, just in time to begin operation on the occasion of the 2014 Lunar New Year.

Kien Giang provincial leaders cited the project as an important milestone in the district’s development.

Kien Giang’s 2020 socio-economic development master plan aims to make Phu Quoc Island into a special administrative-economic zone by the end of the decade, serving as with a national and international center for high-end ecotourism and entertainment.  It is also particularly significant in terms of security and national defense.

The project will help lower the VND25,000 per kWh electricity prices local residents must bear to levels enjoyed by their mainland compatriots. Many people are eager to capitalize on the available savings with newly purchased televisions, fridges, and electric fans.

PM Dung took the opportunity to present certificates of merit to organizations and individuals recognized for their significant contributions to the project.

EVN also handed over a VND2 billion primary school to authorities in Phu Quoc district’s Ham Ninh village.

The construction of the submarine power cable system in pictures:

 

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 Cable Enterprise – an Italian specialized vessel - buried over 57 km of 110 kV underground cable connecting Ha Tien to Phu Quoc.

 

 

 

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The 60 km long cable reel, which was manufactured based on Vietnam’s order was transported from Italy to Vietnam by the Cable Enterprise ship.


 

 

 

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Italian engineers.


 

 

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The cable has three cores of 630 mm3, with the maximum load capacity of 131 MVA. The project was carried out by Italian and Vietnamese experts.


 

 

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The cable is big, with three cores so workers had to use large saws to cut it.


 

 

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 The cable is 1.5 m under the sea bed. Robots participated in burying the cable.

 

 

 

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An Italian expert guided the cable burying through talkies.

 

 

 

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The 110 kV underground cable was pulled slowly to the shore in the village of Hoa Phau, Thuan Yen commune, Ha Tien city.

 

 

 

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Pulling the cable ashore.

 

 

 

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And connecting it to the national grid.

 

 

 

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At 10am on January 11, moderator Vu Ngoc Vien pulled the circuit breaker at the Ha Tien 110 KV transformer station to officially transform power from Ha Tien to Phu Quoc Island.

 

 

 

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Islanders are excited because they will not have to pay the highest power charges in the country anymore.

 

 

Source: VNN/VNE/VOV