The VND6.5 trillion (US$365 million) Nhon Trach 1 Power Plant will run on natural gas from the Nam Con Son and Cuu Long basins, using diesel oil as a backup fuel, according to a statement on the government’s website.

The plant will generate between 2.2 and 2.5 billion kilowatt-hours a year, the statement said.

Nhon Trach 1 Power Plant, which opens after more than two years of construction and testing, will help boost economic development in Ho Chi Minh City and three southern provinces - Dong Nai, Binh Duong, and Ba Ria-Vung Tau, according to the statement.

The 750-megawatt Nhon Trach 2 Power Plant, also in Dong Nai Province and under construction, is expected to launch near the end of 2011, PetroVietnam Power has said.

National power-generation capacity is expected to increase to around 17,900 megawatts this year, the government said earlier this month.