Pilot 2026 GHG emission quotas to be allocated

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha has signed Prime Ministerial Decision No. 263/QD-TTg, approving the total pilot greenhouse gas (GHG) emission quotas for the 2025–2026 period.

Under the decision, the approved pilot quotas will be allocated to 110 key facilities, including 34 thermal power plants, 25 steel production facilities, and 51 cement production plants.

Specifically, the total pilot GHG emission quota for 2025 is set at 243,082,392 tons of CO₂ equivalent (CO₂e). For 2026, the total quota will increase to 268,391,454 tons of CO₂e.

According to the decision, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MoAE) has been tasked to lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) and the Ministry of Construction (MoC) to distribute specific quotas to each individual facility and provide implementation guidelines. MoAE is also responsible for evaluating the pilot results and proposing improvements to legal regulations regarding GHG inventories and quota allocation.

Meanwhile, MoIT and MoC will monitor and evaluate the quota compliance of facilities within their respective management sectors.

Earlier, during a meeting on December 24, 2025, to review the quota proposal, Deputy PM Ha emphasized that this marks the first time Vietnam has implemented emission quota allocations. He stressed that while the program is a pilot designed to familiarize the industry with emission controls, it must be executed strictly with clear legal frameworks to avoid being a mere formality.

He requested that the pilot process include specific calculations for each sector (cement, steel, power, etc.) and clearly define the scale of participating enterprises. This will serve as a foundation to gain experience before expanding the mandate to 100% of emission sources in the future.

Furthermore, he noted that the pilot goes beyond simple numbers; it is a comprehensive process to synchronize methods for measurement, counting, statistics, reporting, and verification (MRV). These methods must be based on solid scientific evidence and aligned with international standards to ensure that Vietnamese data is globally recognized. This effort is closely linked to Vietnam’s responsibilities and commitments under its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC).