CAM RANH, VIETNAM—Thirty-hectare beachfront Alma Resort Cam Ranh is set to complete what it believes is Vietnam’s most profound hotel solar power project by the end of this year.
Alma is currently installing 4,476 solar panels totaling 23,290 square meters on the roofs of its 196 pavilions, two V-shaped towers housing 384 suites, lobby lounge, and utility building.
With a capacity of 2,462 kilowatts peak—the rate at which it generates energy at its peak performance on a sunny day—the solar power system will fuel between a quarter to almost 30 percent of Alma’s energy needs, depending on occupancy determined by the low and high seasons.
The Long-Term Impact
It is estimated the system will save Alma up to $7.2 million in electricity bills over the next 25 years. It will also reduce Alma’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by up to 65,000 tons during a quarter of a century.
Alma’s Managing Director Herbert Laubichler-Pichler said the resort was setting a strong example on the solar power front for the rest of Vietnam’s luxury hotel industry.
“Cam Ranh is renowned as having Vietnam’s best weather, averaging more than 300 sunny days annually,” said Laubichler-Pichler. “The abundant sunshine here lends itself to such a profound and sustainable alternative to electricity that we are well and truly on the way to finishing soon.”
Southeast Asia’s Biggest Solar Power Market
Vietnam has emerged as Southeast Asia’s biggest solar power market, with the largest installed solar capacity in the region due to favorable government policies, such as attractive feed-in-tariffs, and substantial private investment.
The solar power project is one of a host of environmentally friendly initiatives at the resort. The resort has created its own onsite and chemical-free Herb Garden, Nursery Garden and Chicken Farm, providing fresh produce and eggs served at Alma’s restaurants.
In addition to engaging staff in sustainability initiatives, Alma has other measures in place to reduce its carbon footprint including a water treatment plant, electric buggy station, recycling in its garbage room and the resort’s transition to paperless solutions. The 325sqm water treatment plant deploys a reverse osmosis system to provide 70,000L weekly of drinkable water and ice for all the resort’s kitchens. The garbage room processes about 250 kilograms of garbage a day, including compostable waste and recyclables, reselling an average of, for example, 110 liters of cooking oil weekly to non-food businesses so that it is recycled. The resort’s 360sqm buggy station’s 36 electric buggies each take an average of six hours to charge.
For more information, visit alma-resort.com.
