You are using an outdated browser and your browsing experience will not be optimal. Please update to the latest version of Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox. Install Microsoft Edge

October 13, 2020

Circular 21 Updates Procedures for Electricity Operating Licenses in Vietnam

Subscribe to Updates

On September 9, 2020, Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) issued Circular No. 21/2020/TT-BCT on the order and procedures for issuance of electricity operating licenses (Circular 21). Circular 21 will take effect on October 26, 2020, replacing Circular No. 36/2018/TT-BCT as amended by Circular No. 15/2019/TT-BCT (together, Circular 36).

The primary purpose of Circular 21 is to promulgate updated forms and templates for the power generation sector, including templates for the electricity operating licenses themselves, requests for granting or amending such licenses, and reports on the status of various electricity activities. One new template is introduced, for the licensing authorities of provinces and municipalities to report on the granting of electricity operating licenses in their locality for the previous year.

Generally speaking, the changes introduced by Circular 21 are minor, and serve mainly to clarify aspects of Circular 36. One notable change is that the regulations on revocation of electricity operating licenses have been removed. Circular 21 also provides a more generous timeline for responding to a request to amend or supplement an application file. In particular, after an applicant receives a request from the licensing agency to amend its application file, it will have 60 business days to make such amendment, whereas such timeline under Circular 36 was not specified for applications submitted to the MOIT and Electricity Regulatory Authority of Vietnam (ERAV) via the public online portal, and was only five business days for applications for which the licensing agency was the provincial people’s committee.

For more information on Circular 21, please contact us at [email protected].

Related Professionals

Industries

Energy

Location

RELATED INSIGHTS​ 

January 28, 2020
Tilleke & Gibbins authors have provided the latest update to the Thailand Q&A section of Doing Business in… , a Q&A-style guide published by Thomson Reuters Practical Law that presents an overview of recent legal developments affecting doing business in 59 jurisdictions worldwide. The Thailand chapter of the guide was written by attorneys from Tilleke & Gibbins and presents an overview of Thailand’s legal system and key laws applicable to foreign companies doing business in the country.
Read More
December 4, 2019
Introduction    A series of perhaps unrelated drivers have resulted in a renewed emphasis on decommissioning obligations within the energy industry, from government mandates for renewable energy to the end-of-life of many oil and gas concessions and product sharing contracts around Asia and throughout the world. These circumstances have spurred governments and oil and gas interest holders to begin the robust debate on decommissioning obligations and related processes and security arrangements.    
Read More
October 10, 2019
Most of the operators in the petroleum or oil and gas industries are large international companies that correspond and coordinate with their parent companies or contractors, subcontractors, suppliers or vendors who are based around the globe. In addition, such petroleum or oil and gas operators may employ a significant number of employees, and therefore, they may need to collect, use or disclose personal data relating to their contracting parties, or their employees, in their business operations.
Read More
October 9, 2019
With reference to the concession agreement form, as issued under the Ministerial Regulations of the Ministry of Energy regarding the Form for the Designation of a Concession Agreement B.E. 2555 (2012) (“Ministerial Regulations re: the Concession Agreement Form”), the form includes a provision that is related to dispute resolution by arbitration, as set out in Clause 13 of the Concession Agreement.
Read More