On the afternoon of October 21, at the Government Headquarters, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn met with Mr. Phosay Sayasone, Minister of Energy and Mines of Laos, who is visiting and working in Vietnam from October 19 to 21.

 Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn met with Mr. Phosay Sayasone, Minister of Energy and Mines of Laos.

First of all, congratulating Laos on successfully holding the presidency of ASEAN 44, 45, and AIPA 45, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Bùi Thanh Sơn affirmed that Laos is a responsible member with a growing role and voice that is increasingly valued, positively contributing to the stable and sustainable development of the region, while promoting cooperation between ASEAN and its partners for peace, stability, and prosperity in the region and the world.

Recently, the cooperative relationship between the two countries has continued to develop strongly and practically. Political relations are built on trust, highlighted by the annual meeting between the two countries’ high-level leaders (September 2024) and mutual visits. Defense and security cooperation has been strengthened. Economic and trade connectivity has been promoted, with bilateral trade turnover estimated at 1.7 billion USD in the first ten months of 2024, expected to achieve the target of increasing by 10-15% as outlined in the cooperation plan between the two governments. Additionally, cooperation in other fields has also yielded significant results.

"Vietnam always prioritizes its special relationship with Laos," emphasized the Deputy Prime Minister.

In particular, appreciating the positive results of energy and mining cooperation between Vietnam and Laos in recent times, with vibrant and continuously developing collaborative activities, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Bùi Thanh Sơn considered this a key pillar of economic cooperation between the two countries in the future.

To implement the Agreement between the Politburos of Vietnam and Laos in September 2024 and to prepare for summarizing, evaluating, and proposing cooperation directions for 2025 at the 47th meeting of the Vietnam-Laos Intergovernmental Committee co-chaired by the two Prime Ministers at the beginning of 2025, the Deputy Prime Minister suggested that both sides strengthen the implementation of assigned tasks in electricity and coal trading and enhance investment between the two countries.

Specifically, regarding cooperation in electricity trading, both sides need to focus on implementing the Memorandum of Understanding on electricity trading between the two countries (signed in 2006). If by 2030, Vietnam’s electricity import capacity from Laos exceeds 5,000 MW, the Deputy Prime Minister suggested that the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam and the Ministry of Energy and Mines of Laos promptly report so that both governments can consider adjusting the contents of the Memorandum of Cooperation for the development of hydropower projects in Laos, connecting the power systems, and electricity trading between the governments of Vietnam and Laos in accordance with the actual situation.

 Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Bùi Thanh Sơn emphasized: 'Vietnam always values and gives the highest priority to the special relationship between Vietnam and Laos'.

According to Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Bùi Thanh Sơn, the Minister of Energy and Mines of Laos should direct a comprehensive review of electricity projects in Laos that wish to sell electricity to Vietnam from after 2025 to the end of 2030, sending the Ministry of Industry and Trade a summary for research and reporting to the government. During the implementation process, if difficulties arise, the Deputy Prime Minister suggested that both ministries coordinate closely, research, and report to the government on issues beyond their authority.

Regarding the price of imported electricity from Laos after 2025, the government has issued a resolution authorizing the Minister of Industry and Trade to decide on the price framework for importing electricity from Laos for the period 2026 – 2030 based on the principles of harmonized interests, risk-sharing, and market mechanisms. The Minister of Industry and Trade has issued the price framework for importing electricity from Laos for the period after 2025 until the end of 2030 (on October 8, 2024).

However, in the spirit of discussions between Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính and senior Lao leaders during the recent ASEAN 44, 45 Summit, the Prime Minister has instructed the Ministry of Industry and Trade to negotiate with Laos to recalculate the appropriate electricity purchase price.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Bùi Thanh Sơn welcomed the swift establishment by the Ministry of Industry and Trade of a task force for electricity trading between Vietnam and Laos, led by a ministry leader. This demonstrates a strong commitment from Vietnam to promote electricity trading cooperation between the two countries.

Regarding coal cooperation, the supply of coal from Laos in the coming time will be one of the important input sources for electricity production in Vietnam. The Vietnamese government has issued a resolution agreeing on the policy of importing coal from Laos into Vietnam; this will be carried out according to market mechanisms, market prices, and legal regulations. Based on this, the Deputy Prime Minister suggested that the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Energy and Mines of Laos promote research on building, negotiating, and striving to sign a Trade Cooperation Agreement on coal during the 47th meeting of the Vietnam-Laos Intergovernmental Committee.

Additionally, the Deputy Prime Minister also appreciated the cooperation and partnerships between Vietnamese and Lao businesses in constructing the conveyor belt between the two countries.

"I believe that in the future, there will be even more partnerships between businesses from both countries to implement key cooperation projects, contributing to the development of trade and industrial relations between Vietnam and Laos in particular, as well as the economic growth of both countries in general," the Deputy Prime Minister expressed.

On the Lao side, Minister of Energy and Mines Phosay Sayasone thanked the Vietnamese government for always caring about and valuing the cooperative relationship with Laos, especially as many Vietnamese businesses have invested in the energy and mining sectors in Laos.

Notably, the two sides have committed to an electricity trading capacity of 3,000 MW by 2025 and 5,000 MW by 2030. To date, Vietnam has approved the policy to import electricity from the projects of the electricity import cluster from Laos with a total capacity of 2,939 MW; the total contracted electricity trading capacity has reached 2,239 MW, accounting for 74.3% of the committed capacity by 2025.

The Minister, Phosay Sayasone, proposed that both sides continue to engage in in-depth discussions at all levels so that energy and mining can become strengths in the cooperation between the two countries, and he is confident that activities in this field will increasingly achieve higher efficiency in the future.