Viet Nam’s 50% rooftop solar goal: households should start from the power bill

VnExpress reported on 21 April 2026 that, at a seminar organized by Cong Thuong newspaper together with EVN and EVNSPC, industry representatives described the goal of having 50% of household and business rooftops equipped with solar over the next five years as ambitious and challenging. The article points to barriers including upfront cost, confidence in investment effectiveness and the need for stronger support mechanisms.

What households should focus on

According to the article, Power Development Plan VIII targets around 50% of public-office and household rooftops having self-produced, self-consumed rooftop solar by 2030, with a scale of about 26,000 MW. The same report notes fast-rising demand, including 1.092 billion kWh of national electricity output and 52,225 MW of peak capacity on 8 April.

For a household, the practical question is not simply whether the national target is large. The question is whether a specific roof can reduce grid purchases during the family’s real usage hours, and whether the expected bill reduction is clear enough to support the investment decision.

Homes using more electricity during daytime generally match self-consumption PV better.
Homes reaching high tariff blocks in hot months may see clearer value if the system size is chosen correctly.
Homes consuming mostly at night should first review usage habits; battery storage should be treated as a PV-supporting option, not the starting point.

Why maximum capacity is not always the right design

Self-consumed rooftop solar should not be designed on the assumption that bigger is always better. If capacity is too high compared with daytime demand, excess generation may not create proportional household value. If capacity is too low, the summer bill may barely change.

A safer method is to review 6-12 months of electricity bills, identify peak months, estimate daytime consumption and size the PV system to maximize self-consumption. Before installation, homeowners should ask for three numbers: estimated monthly PV output, expected self-consumption ratio and estimated bill reduction under the current tariff structure.

SMARTGEN recommends starting with bill analysis and roof inspection before choosing system capacity. When designed around actual self-use, rooftop solar becomes a monthly electricity-cost control tool for each family.

Reference source: VnExpress.