Northern Vietnam's Mountainous Areas Lag in Electrification, Hindering Digitalization

In the mountainous northern province of Cao Bang, Vietnam, geographical complexities have hindered the expansion of the national power grid, leaving many residents without reliable electricity. This issue significantly impacts daily life, production activities, and particularly the progress of digitalization efforts in rural areas. According to Mr. Hoang Van Lanh, the village head of Lung Ngan village in Ha Quang commune, 18 out of 103 households in his village are not yet connected to the national power grid. These households are scattered and located far from existing power lines, lacking both electricity and internet access, which poses considerable challenges to their production development. At night, their lighting relies on flashlights, oil lamps, or small, self-purchased solar panels, making it difficult to update knowledge beneficial for production. The construction of a digital society, digital citizens, and digital government also faces numerous obstacles due to the lack of electricity and weak mobile phone signals in many areas. As reported by the Cao Bang Department of Industry and Trade, out of a total of 130,933 households in the province, 125,826 are connected to the power grid, but 5,385 households (over 4%) still face electricity shortages. The primary reasons are the scattered distribution of households, long distances, and rugged terrain, which exceed the maximum investment cost per rural household for electricity supply as stipulated by the Ministry of Industry and Trade. This makes extending the national grid to these households extremely difficult. Mr. Do Ngoc Linh, Secretary of the Party Committee of Son Lo commune, stated that out of 13 hamlets, 6 are without mobile phone signals, and three hamlets—Na Khuoi, Khua Lom, and Thom Ngan—lack electricity. The situation of electricity shortages and "dead zones" for mobile signals is identified as a bottleneck in the region's socio-economic development. In response to this situation, Mr. Pham Xuan Tung, Deputy Head of the Office of the Provincial Party Committee and former Director of the Department of Industry and Trade, explained that based on the reality, Cao Bang province has developed a project to supply electricity via solar power for scattered households unable to access the national grid. On June 10th, the Provincial People's Committee assigned the Department of Finance to evaluate the investment proposal for this solar power project for scattered households. Following the directives of the Provincial People's Committee, the Department of Industry and Trade, in coordination with relevant agencies and the Cao Bang Power Company, has reviewed and formulated plans to supply electricity to hamlets, clusters, and households without power. The Cao Bang Power Company has submitted proposals and registered with the Northern Power Corporation, Vietnam Electricity, and the Ministry of Finance for investment projects to build power lines to residential areas and groups of un-electrified households in Cao Bang province for the period 2026-2030, with a total estimated investment of nearly 675 billion VND (approximately $28 million USD). Mr. Vu Xuan Linh, Director of the Cao Bang Power Company, noted that for scattered and isolated households, extending the grid is high-cost and inefficient. Installing individual solar power systems for each household is a more feasible solution. Furthermore, with the projected increase in electricity demand during hot seasons, supply shortages are possible. The Cao Bang Power Company is also actively promoting and encouraging companies and households in urban and central areas with the means to install rooftop solar power systems under a self-generation, self-consumption model, aligning with the province's green development orientation and partially meeting electricity needs in case of supply shortfalls.