(HBO) – Hoa Binh hydropower plant has become a unmissable destination of any exploration boat trip along the Da River in Hoa Binh province. The plant is indelibly etched on tourists’ minds with powerful generation turbines, while a traditional house keeping a century letter sent to future generations, a President Ho Chi Minh statue and a memorial statue memorising Vietnamese and Russian experts who died during the plant construction give them a deep insight into historical values of the plant.

Hoa Binh hydropower plant is
part of the Da River tour
The granite statue of President Ho Chi Minh,
18 metre in height and
over 400 tonnes in weight, was placed on the top of Tuong Hill in the Hoa Binh
hydropower plant complex. It looks like Uncle Ho is watching local officials
and people making concerted efforts to build a prosperous Hoa Binh province.
From the statue, which is
128
metres above sea level, visitors can enjoy a picturesque
landscape of the giant hydropower plant, immense Hoa Binh reservoir, and afar
distant mountain ranges.
Paying tribute to the late President reminds visitors of a time in 1960 when
taking a boat trip on the Da River, President Ho Chi Minh said that the river
must be conquered to bring long-term benefits to people. And his wish came
true.
In the past decades, Hoa Binh hydropower plant has been consistently generating
power for the country’s renovation process.
To realise the Party and Government’s "electrification” orientation, tens of
thousands of officers, engineers and workers had made tireless efforts to race
against time to complete the construction of the plant. The region was once
teeming with emulation slogans and streaming national flags. It was crowded
with transporters bringing goods, rocks and building materials around the clock.
Trans-mountain tunnels, hundreds of metres in depth, were built on time. Million
tonnes of soils and stones were dug and gathered for blocking the river. Great
endeavors had been made and even blood was shed for the national electricity.
The eight-turbine Hoa Binh hydropower plant with total designed capacity of
1,920 MW became operational and connected with the national grid on December
20, 1994. The plant manifests the sacrifice and industriousness of officers and
experts from
Russia.
168 Russian officials, workers, and experts laid down their lives during the
construction of the plant, making it a symbol of great Vietnam-Russia
friendship relations.
Today,
officers and engineers from the Hoa Binh Hydropower Plant Company are making constant
efforts to manage the plant and generate over 200 billion kWh of electricity for
the national grid, making contributions to the nation’s industrialisation and
modernisation./.
Le Chung
Hoa Binh province has carried out multiple programmes and initiatives to revive its cultural heritage which has gradually fallen into oblivion through the ebbs and flows of history.
The most prominent and defining feature in the prehistoric era of Hoa Binh is the Hoa Binh Culture. The Culture was first discovered in Hoa Binh. The significant prehistoric culture represents not only Vietnam but also Southeast Asia and southern China. Through excavations of cave sites in the limestone regions of Hoa Binh, French archaeologist M. Colani introduced the world to a "Stone Age in Hoa Binh province – Northern Vietnam" in 1927. On January 30, 1932, the First Congress of Far Eastern Prehistorians, held in Hanoi, officially recognised the Hoa Binh Culture.
Known as the "Land of Epic History”, Hoa Binh province, the gateway to Vietnam’s northwest, boasts a strategic location and a unique cultural tapestry woven by its ethnic minority communities.
The People's Committee of Luong Son District recently held a ceremony to receive the certificate recognizing Sau Communal House in Thanh Cao Commune as a provincial-level historical and cultural site.
Recognising the importance of cultural heritage preservation in protecting and promoting the value system of Vietnamese culture, and serving socio-economic development in the new period, Party committees and local administrations in Hoa Binh province have identified it as a key task in the cultural development strategy. The province has been making efforts in mobilising resources, creating consensus among people and engaging ethnic communities in preserving and promoting cultural identity.
Hoa Binh province has captured growing attention both domestically and internationally for its distinctive cultural heritage and rich history. Most notably, it has been renowned for its famous Hoa Binh culture, considered the cradle of ancient Vietnamese civilisation. Looking ahead to significant milestones in 2025 and the 140th anniversary of province establishment in 2026, Hoa Binh Newspaper presents a comprehensive overview of the province's development across economic, social, cultural, tourism, and security domains.