Vietnam cuts electricity prices for first time in 20 years

State-run Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) announced the reduction on Saturday evening, following a review of operating costs and efforts to maximize savings.

Under a decision issued by EVN on October 30, the average retail electricity price has been lowered to VND2,159.9037 (US$0.084) per kilowatt-hour (kWh), excluding value-added tax (VAT), down from VND2,204.0655 ($0.09) per kWh.

EVN said the move was aimed at supporting macroeconomic stability and easing costs for consumers and businesses in line with government directives.

The average retail electricity price serves as the basis for setting specific tariffs for residential, industrial, and commercial customers.

This marks the first reduction in the average electricity price in nearly 20 years, excluding five rounds of electricity price cuts and bill discounts introduced to support households and businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Speaking at a National Assembly session on Saturday, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Van Thang said the government had instructed EVN to cut costs and lower retail electricity prices by around two percent through March 2027.

He said the electricity price reduction, together with the elimination of the special consumption tax on gasoline, would create an additional 0.07 percentage points of room to keep inflation within the National Assembly's 4.5-percent target.

The move follows EVN's disclosure that its average electricity production and business cost in 2025 was VND2,092.70 ($0.0811) per kWh, 5.32 percent below the previous average retail price.

However, EVN also reported VND17.51 trillion ($678 million) in accumulated costs that had yet to be accounted for by the end of 2025, mainly involving outstanding foreign exchange differences related to payments to power plants from 2021 to 2025.