Viet Nam currently has an installed solar energy capacity of 16 GW and, therefore, holds a top position in Southeast Asia. With the recently signed Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) Agreement, this capacity will presumably increase further, which will increasingly require targeted quality assurance. Against this background, the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality (STAMEQ) engaged in a BMZ-funded partnership with PTB to promote Quality Assurance Services for Sustainable Energy in Viet Nam, especially in the field of photovoltaics (PV).
In order to analyze the current status of quality assurance in Viet Nam’s PV sector, PTB had commissioned two teams of consultants consisting of national and international experts to prepare two studies. One of the studies deals with the demand and supply of metrology and conformity assessment services in the PV sector in Vietnam and provides an overview of the metrology and conformity assessment of the national quality infrastructure (QI). The other study, which was carried out in the area of standardization, shows identified gaps in the system of national and international standards in the PV sector. In this way, partners can receive better consulting and support with regard to these standards that have not yet been transferred into the national system but are essential for the sector and its further development.
First, intermediate results of the two studies were presented at a validation workshop at STAMEQ held in October 2023, in which approximately 30 private and public stakeholders took part. The final results were subsequently presented to approximately 40 participants at the Quality Assurance and Testing Center 3 (QUATEST 3), a public conformity assessment body and scientific/technical organization of STAMEQ, in Ho Chi Minh City on 24 November 2023. Both validation workshops were very successful and played an important part in improving the quality and attention to detail in the two studies. Participants were able to gain important insights that not only reflect the status quo of the PV sector in terms of standardization, metrology and conformity assessment, but also offer Viet Nam’s QI a basis for recommendations for actions in this sector.
The results of the studies will be published in 2024 and lay an important foundation for supporting quality assurance in the new territory of renewable energies in Viet Nam. Based on these results, a Calidena process was conducted in April 2024 as a first step to further specify the current quality challenges in the PV sector and identify solutions for both the supply and demand of QI services in the sector. Calidena is a moderated and participative process which stimulates quality in value chains (see https://www.calidena.ptb.de).
Images © Nancy Balbín
