ACCIONA eyes potential market of Vietnam

Rubén Camba, director of the infrastructure division of ACCIONA in Singapore and Southeast Asia, shares with VIR his views on the company’s outlook and plans in Vietnam.

Who are ACCIONA and what industries does the company specialise in?

ACCIONA is a leading group for sustainable infrastructure solutions and renewable energy projects around the world. With more than 100 years of experience, it applies sustainable solutions to the areas in which it operates, promoting development in today’s world without compromising the environment or future growth. Innovation and the use of pioneering technology define all of its projects, which are structured around two core business areas – energy and infrastructure.

Its infrastructure division is present in more than 35 countries on five continents. The company offers solutions adapted to each individual project through its five business lines (construction, concessions, water, industrial, and services), ensuring an integral offer that spans the entire project value chain, from development, engineering, and construction through to commissioning, operation, and maintenance.

Through its construction business, ACCIONA is one of the world’s most globalised civil engineering companies. It specialises in three major areas: roads and bridges, railways and tunnels, and special projects.

In its concessions business, ACCIONA is a global, integrated, and sustainable industrial infrastructure developer that specialises in the areas of transport, social infrastructure, sustainability, and telecommunications and industry.

In the industrial sector, ACCIONA specialises in EPC (engineering, procurement, construction) and turnkey projects with a high technology content like waste-to-energy. In this area, ACCIONA have eight business lines: thermal, photovoltaic, hydroelectric, and wind energy generation; oil and gas; transmission networks and substations; facilities; and alternative energies.

In the water sector, the group has extensive experience of designing and constructing treatment plants, as well as managing the integral water cycle spanning every stage of this process.

In the services sector, ACCIONA offers sustainable and innovative solutions through its five business lines for transport, facility services, citizen services, energy efficiency, and mobility.

In the renewable energy sector, it is a global operator and the largest in the world exclusively dedicated to clean energy and not part of a conventional power company.

What are the most advanced technologies that ACCIONA uses? How are they applied to ACCIONA’s projects?

Innovation and the use of pioneering technology define all of ACCIONA’s projects. In recent years, ACCIONA had a firm commitment to innovation. During 2018, the company credited with a number of R&D of 225.4 million euros ($252.2 million).

In recent years, ACCIONA has positioned itself as one of the most innovative companies on an international level. Notably, it ranks150^th in Europe and 6^th in Spain in the 2018 EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard. Besides, 2018 Global Innovation 1000places ACCIONA in 5^th position of the seven Spanish companies listed in the ranking.

We focus innovation on the areas directly related to our clients and we apply tailored solutions to every issue that arises. Our creations are highly technological.

One of the applications is the use of our Reality Capture technology, which allows for the design of digital models of building interiors, large spaces, or infrastructures, showing the exact details of each in an original and innovative approach. Its ability to seize the conditions that form the experience make possible the displacement, in a fully immersive way, through digitally generated 3D models to know the real dimensions, obtain the As-Built plans, carry out the facility management with the generated BIM model, and analyse alternatives for the use of space by trying out different compositions with virtual reality equipment.

We have a range of new technologies that the project teams apply in tunnel projects during the excavation with TBM [tunnel boring machine], water solutions to improve the quality of water treatment, and renewable energy technologies to remotely control more than 13,000MW of energy production.

ACCIONA has several technology centres. The company innovates in renewable energies in Pamplona's Technology Centre, in infrastructure in Madrid's Technology Centre, and in water technologies in Barcelona's Technology Centre.

Why did ACCIONA choose Vietnam as its next destination in Southeast Asia? What potentials can you see in this market?

ACCIONA sees extraordinary potential in the Vietnamese market. Its capacity for economic recovery, its history, current situation, and prospects show that the market in Vietnam is a great opportunity for our company. With 95 million people, young population, and a good level of education, we see the country's consumption growing year to year.

This consumption growth means more need for energy, water, and infrastructures, and ACCIONA sees that the country is taking the right steps to close the infrastructure gap. One clear indication is that Vietnam is looking at the private sector to invest in infrastructure and is currently working on the approval of a public-private partnership (PPP) law which will attract more foreign investment.

Vietnam is committed to increasing its installed renewable energy capacity and plans to increase the long-term sustainability, durability, and effectiveness of its water services – not to mention its clear intention to promote infrastructure development in the country. All these objectives have led us to view Vietnam as a long-term market.

Do you think it is quite late or just the right time for ACCIONA to enter Vietnam?

The big cities of Vietnam, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, are now developing the first metro lines and this is only the beginning. Each one of these cities has more than 9 million people. London's population is around 9 million people as well and the city has eleven metro lines with more than 400 kilometres combined. Urban transportation is a sector with a great potential in Vietnam.

With a rapidly growing economy, Vietnam is facing an increase in energy demand which is forecasted to grow by 10 per cent annually, which ACCIONA can help to resolve using renewable energy.

Nowadays, modernisation of the water infrastructure is one of the main priorities of the country. Although Vietnam is rich in water, supply is problematic as weather and terrain hamper storage. This is only an example for which ACICONA can provide solutions.

Currently, traffic congestion and floods are major problems that Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi are looking for measures to address. Could you advise on sustainable solutions to solve these issues?

The construction of metro lines initiated in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi will help to alleviate traffic congestion. Once the metro is constructed, people will use public transport instead of cars or motorbikes, reducing the level of pollution and traffic jams. Other solutions are implemented nowadays in the cities, with technologies to control the flow of vehicles in peak hours or the better management of traffic in the city by implementing smart solutions.

Flooding control solutions are implemented in cities where this is a problem, like in the big cities of Vietnam. ACCIONA’s capabilities included the detailed study of the best engineering techniques to control floods, analysing data of previous years and designing the best solution to address the flooding problems