Vietnam’s SkyX Solar announced that it signed a joint venture agreement with SAIGONTEL to build and operate rooftop solar projects for industrial facilities within the industrial parks affiliated with the latter in Vietnam.

SkyX, a solar rooftop developer focused on the commercial and industrial segments, said that it would hold the majority stake in this joint venture and will be responsible for the development of the projects.

In a press statement issued by SkyX, it said that the joint venture would initially develop and operate 50 MW of rooftop projects at ten industrial parks initially. SkyX added that six of these individual parks are in the central and south regions of the country, which have the highest irradiation levels. The joint venture will offer end-to-end renewable energy solutions to creditworthy client partners, which entails zero CAPEX and OPEX from them but, at the same time, will bring cost savings and carbon footprint reduction benefits.

“Rooftop solar, especially for the commercial and industrial (C&I) segment, will be a game-changer for the renewable power sector in Vietnam. This partnership is a strong milestone in our journey to 150 MW + development in Vietnam over the next three years,” said Samresh Kumar, Executive Chairman of SkyX Solar and Managing Director, VinaCapital.

SkyX Solar is a subsidiary of VinaCapital Group, which is an investment management firm headquartered in Vietnam. SAIGONTEL, on the other hand, is a member of the SGI Group and provides infrastructure and telecommunication services.

The rooftop solar power market in Vietnam is witnessing significant demand as leading companies increasingly focus on sustainability and managing rising electricity prices. The company’s press statement added that it is expected that more than 4,000 MW of rooftop solar power will be developed in the next five to seven years in the country.

Recently, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, announced that it would provide a loan to the Vietnam Prosperity Joint Stock Commercial Bank (VP Bank) to help expand its lending capacity to small and medium enterprises (SME) for climate-friendly projects. The IFC explained that being one of the most carbon-intensive countries in the world, reducing greenhouse-gas emissions has been a national target to mitigate climate change impacts for Vietnam.

Previously, Mercom reported that after months of confusion and uncertainty over the future of renewable projects in Vietnam, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has announced that the country will go back to conducting solar auctions, doing away with the feed-in-tariff mechanism. Speaking on the topic of FiT, which has been prevalent for rooftop solar projects in the country, the prime minister said that the development of the solar sector requires the introduction of an auction system for the ground-mounted solar projects.

Also, the Asian Development Bank has signed a $37 million loan agreement that would finance the installation of a 47.5 MW floating solar project in Vietnam. The global lender has signed the agreement with Da Nhim–Ham Thuan–Da Mi Hydro Power Joint Stock Company to facilitate the floating solar installation on the man-made reservoir of DHD’s existing 175 MW Da Mi hydropower project.