A hydropower plant in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue has repeatedly breached storage water regulations despite a ban by authorities.

Before Storm Vamco was forecasted to pummel Vietnam’s central localities, Thua-Thien Hue authorities requested Thuong Nhat Hydropower Plant to suspend water storage, instead of opening all of its five spillway gates on November 14.

 Thuong Nhat Hydropower Plant 

However, this was ignored, so a local taskforce was sent to the plant to supervise the water discharge.

Due to being affected by Typhoon Vamco, the area where the task force visited was quite dangerous with landslides. This forced the group members to temporarily leave the area to ensure their safety first.

As soon as they left the site, Thuong Nhat Hydropower Plant continued storing water despite the ban. On November 15, it operated only one among the five spillway gates.

According to Le Thanh Ho, vice-chairman of Nam Dong District People’s Committee, since February, the plant has stored water unlawfully many times.

To date, Thuong Nhat Hydropower Plant has not yet been licensed for water storage.

On Monday, the Ministry of Industry and Trade established a team to inspect Thuong Nha Hydropower Plant after recent storms and floods. The mission will check the project’s compliances on reservoir management and natural disaster prevention and control and propose solutions to deal with possible violations.

The inspection will start from today, November 17. Dtinews

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