Bim Son Cement JSC (BCC) has decided to invest over VND570bn (US$27.4m) in building a waste heat-to-power plant with a capacity of 11MW in the central province of Thanh Hoa.

Of the sum, VND85.518bn will be BCC’s private equity capital and the rest of VND484.604 will be bank loans, the state-run Vietnam News Agency said.

The 1500ha facility is slated for operation in December 2013 to utilise waste heat discharge from BCC’s cement mill as input materials to generate electricity.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade is calling on cement mills to be self-sufficient of at least 20% of electricity consumed from now through 2015.