Allocating Sea Area for Offshore Wind Power Projects In Vietnam
Applicability of Decree 11/2021
It is likely that an offshore wind power project (Offshore WPP) will need to follow the procedures under Decree 11/2021 in order to be allocated with the necessary sea area for development and operation of the Offshore WPP. This is because:
Under the current wind power development regime of Vietnam, an Offshore WPP is defined as a grid-connected wind power project with wind power turbines constructed and operated “from the average lowest seawater line over several years off the coast” (nằm ngoài đường mép nước biển thấp nhất trung bình trong nhiều năm ra ngoài khơi);
Decree 11/2021 applies to the allocation of certain sea area “from the average lowest seawater line over several years off the coast” for exploitation and use of “sea resource” (tài nguyên biển); and
Sea resource is defined to include biological and non-biological resource of the water mass, the [sea] bed and the soil beneath the seabed.