Vietnam Seeks Electricity Price Cut From November and Zero Special Consumption Tax on Gasoline

Five Months of Energy Relief Under Review

Vietnam Electricity (EVN) has been instructed to calculate a reduction in the average retail electricity price for November 1, 2026, through March 31, 2027, as the government also examines temporarily cutting the special consumption tax on gasoline to zero.

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyễn Văn Thắng issued the instructions at an October 27 meeting at Government headquarters. The proposed measures would cover five months, with the electricity plan built around a review of EVN's costs and the gasoline measure subject to an urgent assessment of its legal basis and financial effects.

The government's meeting account says the aim is to support households and businesses and protect social welfare. Leaders from the ministries of Finance and Industry and Trade, the Government Office, a Justice Ministry representative and EVN's director general attended.

No electricity reduction amount, revised household tariff schedule or final approval of the gasoline tax proposal was announced. The immediate task is to prepare and review the measures in time for the proposed November 1 start.

EVN Must Find Savings Before Proposing a Price

EVN must urgently review its spending, calculate its costs and identify the maximum savings it can make before submitting an electricity price proposal to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Thắng's instruction connects the proposed reduction directly to that financial review. EVN must produce a plan that follows the legal rules governing how and when the average retail electricity price can change, along with other relevant regulations.

The process therefore starts with the utility's accounts: how much electricity costs to produce and supply, where spending can be reduced, and what average selling price those calculations can support. For customers, the result would matter through the tariffs used to calculate their bills.

What the Current Electricity Figures Mean

The current average retail electricity price is 2,204.0655 Vietnamese dong per kilowatt hour, excluding value added tax (VAT). That level took effect on May 10, 2025, under Decision No. 599 and represented an increase of 4.8% from the previous price.

Decision No. 1279/QĐ-BCT, issued on May 9, 2025, also sets the average retail electricity price at 2,204.0655 dong per kWh, excluding VAT, in Article 2. Article 3 provides for the electricity prices to apply from May 10, 2025. The decision cites EVN's Decision No. 599/QĐ-EVN dated May 7, 2025.

A kilowatt hour, usually written as kWh, measures electricity use. An appliance drawing one kilowatt of power for one hour uses one kWh. The average retail price reflects electricity production and business costs, together with an average profit amount, for each unit sold.

Vietnam uses that average as a basis for setting specific tariffs for different customer groups, including households, manufacturers and other businesses. A household's bill is calculated using its applicable tariff and consumption, rather than simply multiplying all its electricity use by the national average.

Household electricity currently has six progressive tiers. The first 50 kWh used each month cost 1,984 dong per kWh, while consumption above 400 kWh costs 3,460 dong per kWh, excluding VAT. Progressive pricing means the portion of electricity falling into each higher band is charged at that band's rate.

The household tariff schedule in the appendix to Decision No. 1279/QĐ-BCT sets out all six tiers, excluding VAT:

• Tier 1, 0–50 kWh: 1,984 dong per kWh.
• Tier 2, 51–100 kWh: 2,050 dong per kWh.
• Tier 3, 101–200 kWh: 2,380 dong per kWh.
• Tier 4, 201–300 kWh: 2,998 dong per kWh.
• Tier 5, 301–400 kWh: 3,350 dong per kWh.
• Tier 6, 401 kWh and above: 3,460 dong per kWh.

The difference between those two rates is 1,476 dong per kWh. The highest rate is about 74% above the first tier, illustrating why the final tariff details would matter alongside any announced change in the average price.

Generation Costs Dominate the Review

The Ministry of Industry and Trade says electricity generation accounts for about 83% of electricity production costs. In simple terms, roughly 83 out of every 100 dong in those costs goes toward producing the power itself.

That large share makes generation costs central to EVN's calculations. The ministry identifies the mix of electricity sources, fuel prices and exchange rate movements as factors affecting those costs.

The source mix matters because different types of power have different production expenses. Fuel prices affect the cost of running plants that burn fuel, while exchange rate changes can alter expenses linked to foreign currencies. EVN's review must turn those cost conditions, together with any savings, into a proposed selling price.

For households and businesses, the practical issue is the size and structure of the reduction that emerges from the review. The government's instruction sets the intended period and asks for maximum savings; EVN's calculations will provide the figures for the ministry to examine.

Industry and Trade Ministry Will Review the Plan

The Ministry of Industry and Trade has been assigned to examine EVN's proposal and give its assessment in time for the intended November 1 reduction. Its responsibilities include checking and reviewing the proposed average retail price.

Matters beyond the ministry's authority must be reported promptly to the authorities empowered to decide them. The instruction creates a sequence of responsibilities: EVN prepares the calculations, the ministry reviews them, and any decisions requiring higher authority are referred onward.

The October 27 meeting leaves only a short interval before the planned start. The ministry must handle the review while observing the existing rules on electricity price adjustments, rather than treating the target date as a replacement for those requirements.

Gasoline Tax Proposal Takes a Different Route

The Ministry of Finance has a separate assignment: assess whether the special consumption tax rate on gasoline can temporarily be reduced to 0%. The proposed period matches the electricity measure, running from November 1, 2026, through March 31, 2027.

A special consumption tax is a tax applied to selected goods. Setting this particular gasoline tax rate at zero would remove that tax charge for the approved period. The amount motorists would save would depend on the final decision and how the change is reflected in pump prices.

The Finance Ministry must work with the ministries of Industry and Trade and Justice, together with other relevant agencies. Their assessment must cover the legal basis, who has authority to approve the change, its effects and whether it can be carried out.

Thắng directed the ministry to complete that work before November 1, 2026, and submit it to the competent authorities for consideration and a decision under the law. Electricity relief would proceed through a utility cost and pricing review, while gasoline relief would proceed through a tax assessment.

The Dates That Shape the Proposals

The timetable brings together an existing electricity price, an urgent government review and a proposed relief period extending into 2027:

• May 10, 2025: The average retail electricity price rose by 4.8% to 2,204.0655 dong per kWh, excluding VAT.
• October 27, 2026: Thắng chaired the meeting directing EVN and the ministries to prepare the electricity and gasoline measures.
• Before November 1, 2026: The Finance Ministry must complete its gasoline tax assessment and submit it for consideration.
• November 1, 2026: The intended start date for both measures, subject to the required reviews and decisions.
• March 31, 2027: The proposed final day of both relief measures.

Households would feel an approved electricity reduction through the tariff applied to their consumption. Businesses would also be affected according to their customer category and electricity use. Gasoline users would depend on the outcome of the separate tax process and the resulting retail price adjustment.

The next concrete steps are EVN's submission, the Industry and Trade Ministry's review and the Finance Ministry's assessment before the November deadline. Those steps will determine how the government's intended support becomes specific prices and tax rules.

Key Points

• EVN must identify cost savings and propose a lower average retail electricity price for November 2026 through March 2027.
• The current average is 2,204.0655 dong per kWh, excluding VAT, following a 4.8% increase in May 2025.
• The Industry and Trade Ministry must review EVN's plan and refer matters beyond its authority for a decision.
• The Finance Ministry must assess a temporary 0% special consumption tax on gasoline before November 1, 2026.
• The proposed measures aim to support households and businesses over the same five months.