26 May, 2018

International Workshop: “Developing the first Zero-Energy Township in Vietnam”

Nam Cuong Corporation held an international workshop on the Development of the first Zero-Energy Township in Vietnam at the Nam Cuong Building, Ha Dong District, Hanoi on March 7, 2017 with the participation of reputable experts from Denmark, the IFC – a member of the World Bank Group, and Vietnamese experts and companies specializing in providing green-building technologies, solutions and equipment.

For many years, human utilization of the world’s natural resources has been faster than the planet’s ability to recover, resulting in the increasingly worsening impacts of climate change. Thus, at this time, people have to live in a polluted environment that directly affects our health every day. According to the IFC, buildings in fast-growing economies like Vietnam are using more than 30% of the total energy consumption. Vietnam is one of the countries most affected by climate change. Although there are many companies and corporations aiming to develop green buildings, the number of certified green buildings throughout the country is very limited, mainly office buildings, supermarkets and a few residences.

The workshop aimed to disseminate and share experiences and information on the cutting-edge technologies in developing green buildings around the world, from the assessment criteria to the applied technologies, from a single building to the whole township, such as the 200ha Duong Noi Township.

The IFC’s EDGE (Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies) Certification System of the World Bank Group is a powerful tool in the realization of green buildings in many new emerging markets in the world, such as Vietnam, Colombia, Costa Rica, Indonesia, India, Panama, the Philippines, and South Africa among others, with the goal of 20% of new buildings in 2021 being green buildings. At the workshop, the guests were informed about the EDGE Certification System by IFC experts.

The experience of building the green township of Fujisawa, Japan was a highlight in the workshop. Fujisawa was built on the former site of the Panasonic factory and is going to be one of the smartest and the most eco-friendly townships with 1,000 houses and infrastructure facilities. In addition, smart buildings with green architecture have contributed significantly to energy savings, reducing CO2 emissions into the environment, and even self-supplying electricity and feeding of the excess electricity to the national power grid. Solar energy utilization solutions in SolarBK’s buildings were also presented by another partner at the event.

Also at the workshop, the innovative and energy-efficient pump system applications, which are remarkable energy efficiency technologies, were shared by Grundfos. Architect Tran Thanh Vu, Building Science and Energy Simulation Specialist of the Vietnam Clean Energy Program, delivered an impressive presentation with useful information about the concepts, demands and solutions for developing Zero-Energy buildings and townships.

Mr. Poul Erik Kristensen, an international expert with more than 30 years of experience in green building development in Denmark, Europe and many Asian countries, also participated and presented at the workshop. According to him, at present, there are a number of townships in the world that are being oriented toward and developed into Zero-Energy townships in the near future, such as Copenhagen with an urban population of 1.2 million (Denmark), Z-net Uralla (Australia), Crisfield Community in Maryland (United States), and others. With the intention of the Nam Cuong Corporation to develop a Zero-Energy Township, Duong Noi Township needs synchronized planning and design in order to utilize energy resources efficiently, and minimize the dependence on the national power grid. In addition, the development of renewable energy resources, especially solar power, is needed to supply enough energy for business and household customers.

“From the perspective of a real-estate developer who puts people at the heart of our efforts and inspiration, we place great value on our responsibility to millions of residents, including not just those of today but also future generations. The development of green buildings aiming to increase energy efficiency and save energy resources will create significant value for the ecosystem and society. Nam Cuong Corporation will focus on developing projects that benefit the community, contribute to environmental protection, and reduce dependency on fossil fuels and other non-renewable resources. We aim at sustainable development and implementation of corporate social responsibility in the long-term”, said Ms. Tran Thi Quynh Ngoc, Deputy Chair-womanof Nam Cuong Corporation.

At present, Nam Cuong Corporation is developing Duong Noi into the first Zero-Energy Township in Vietnam,  which will have almost no energy consumption. The Anland Complex and An Phu Shop-villa were built as per the standards of the EDGE Certification by Nam Cuong Corporation. In particular, Anland Complex and An Phu Shop-villa were designed to reduce energy consumption by 20% to 27%. The Nam Cuong Corporation has set the goal, from now up to 2020, to make the EDGE Certification the standard for all its properties, to become a center for sharing green building development experiences for developers and design teams, and to become a reliable real-estate developer for customers on energy saving issues.

“Your vision will have a positive impact on other real-estate developers”, said Jane Henley, the IFC’s EAP EDGE Programme Manager.

In February 2017, Nam Cuong Corporation and the IFC signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), in which all of Nam Cuong Corporation’s existing properties will be assessed under the standards of the EDGE Certification. The IFC will also provide training to Nam Cuong Corporation’s staff on the principles and applications of the EDGE software. The IFC appreciates the efforts of the Nam Cuong Corporation to stimulate the trend of green buildings in Vietnam.