Vietnam’s onshore wind development is actively transitioning from fringe to mainstream, propelled by favourable geography, generous policies, and growing international investment.

Offshore wind, by contrast, remains a potential epoch‑defining opportunity still shackled by regulatory inertia and infrastructural underdevelopment.

Onshore wind: momentum

Hanoi has made significant strides in onshore wind capacity. According to renewable energy data, by mid‑2022 the country had over 4 000 MW of operating wind farms across more than 80 projects, a dramatic surge from just 331 MW three years earlier. Developers in that time exploited wind‑rich provinces including Binh Thuan, Ninh Thuan, Bac Lieu, Tra Vinh, Gia Lai and Dak Lak – all regions offering powerful coastal winds and highland breezes alike.

Standout projects include the Ea Nam Wind Farm in Dac Lak: commissioned in 2021 with around 400 MW of capacity, developed by Trungnam Group, the Ia Pet–Dak Doa in Gia Lai at around 198 MW, also operational as of 2021, and the Tay Nguyen Wind Farm, a 440 MW project in Dac Lak led by GE Renewable Energy with local partner Huy Hoang Logistics.

Quang Binh Wind Project (~352 MW) and Hoa Lac Vinh Chau (~350 MW) in Soc Trang – are two other large-scale projects in the works.

Combined, these undertakings illustrate not only fast capacity build‑out, but also domestic geographic diversity - stretching from the Central Highlands to the Mekong Delta - all enabled in part by stable policies such as feed‑in tariffs of approximately $0.085 per kWh for onshore wind, secured through 20‑year power purchase agreements

Crucially, international finance and expertise have helped turn ambition into reality. The Bac Lieu wind farm received financing terms including backing from the US‑EXIM bank and incorporated GE turbines, demonstrating early, if still underwhelming, confidence in Vietnamese wind by global partners. Mui Dinh in Ninh Thuan has also deployed German Enercon turbine technology, showcasing international technological transfer.

More recently, conglomerates like AC Energy of the Philippines, via its potential 88-MW Mui Ne Wind Farm in Binh Thuan, and Vietnamese conglomerate Vingroup proposing a $4.5bn nearshore wind project of 3,000 MW in Tra Vinh province, underscore the blend of foreign and domestic investment targeting both onshore and nearshore development The Investor reports.

Offshore wind: delayed promise

Vietnam’s offshore wind potential meanwhile is dwarfed by its onshore track record. The World Bank Group estimates technical offshore potential at over 470 GW. The national Power Development Plan VIII (PDP8) reflects this promise, setting targets of 6–17 GW by 2030–2035, and even 139 GW by 2050 according to the World Bank.

Yet despite high expectations, tangible progress remains sluggish. As of mid‑2024, no operational offshore wind farms had broken ground, largely due to uncertainty in pricing mechanisms, land and maritime licensing delays, and state insistence on early pilot projects being awarded to domestic state‑owned enterprises – all being practices foreign investors caution could stifle momentum.

Industry watchers have also mentioned the possibility that ongoing territorial issues with China over the South China Sea could also be playing a role, to the detriment of sector development.

There are, however, several high‑profile proposals which offer hope, most notably the PNE AG’s Hon Trau project in Binh Dinh Province: a $4.6bn, 2,000-MW offshore wind farm expected to be developed in phases, with an early phase of 750 MW by 2030. This is widely seen as a symbol of Vietnamese‑German cooperation, the local Saigon Times reports.

A global name in wind development, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) has also allied with a Vietnamese state enterprise on the La Gan project in Binh Thuan, targeting 3.5 GW of capacity report suggest.

To help buttress the regulatory landscape, the World Bank Group (via ESMAP and IFC), supported by Australia’s DFAT, published a comprehensive set of recommendations in mid‑2025: encouraging long‑term licensing frameworks, grid and port planning, competitive auctions, bankable PPAs and offshore development zones the World Bang Group reports.

Conversely, regulatory ambiguity persists. Local media The Saigon Times says Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade has reportedly suggested taking another look at the offshore wind target timeline and possibly deferring large-scale development beyond 2030 in favour of accelerating onshore and nearshore wind roll‑out first, aiming for as much as 27–35 GW of wind power capacity by 2030.

Balancing act: ambition VS reality

Given any portion of, and all of the above, Vietnam’s offshore wind journey as it stands, epitomises the tension between soaring ambition and administrative friction. The country’s geography, technical potential, and growing demand make valuation nearly unassailable. However, without firm policies, streamlined procurement, and infrastructure readiness, the vision runs the risk of remaining theoretical. To this end, the government is making moves, but not moves that currently keep pace with the demands of international developers.

Onshore wind, by contrast, is a realm of execution, with dozens of farms online or under construction, and foreign financiers comfortable contributing through FiTs and trade finance. Emerging players like Pacifico Energy, CIP, PNE, AC Energy, GE and Enercon hint at a viable path forward, if policies remain consistent and pipelines transparent.

That said, Vietnam’s energy landscape also reflects broader pivots. A February 2025 AP News report noted the government is recalibrating its energy strategy away from expensive and delayed offshore wind projects (and also LNG) and toward solar, rooftop systems, and storage to meet a projected 211 GW demand by 2030.

Balanced with PDP8 and World Bank‑IFC guidance, the longer‑term offshore vision remains intact for now, even if it is delayed.