ROLE AND IMPACT OF GEOTHERMAL ENERGY FOR THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN VIETNAM

Abstract

Geothermal energy is a natural energy source available from the Earth that offers a sustainable alternative to fossil fuels. The development of geothermal energy is one of necessary solutions to meet the increasing energy demand and ensure the energy security in Vietnam. The paper aims to present the role and impact of geothermal energy for the sustainable development in Vietnam. The study results show that there are more than 300 geothermal energy sources in Vietnam territory with the temperatures from 30oC to 148oC. Although the geothermal utilization in Vietnam has been studied and applied for the long time, it is only for heating, such as agricultural heating, salt production, or spa, tourism, etc. Until now, the use of geothermal energy resources to generate electricity power plants is still not applied and deployed. This paper also considers and analyses main impacts of geothermal energy for the sustainable development in Vietnam towards the environment and society. Moreover, some recommendations are providing for enabling the exploitation of geothermal energy resources for the development sustainable development in Vietnam.