Vietnam to form oil and gas group

The Vietnamese government has just decided to re-organize the state-owned Vietnam Oil and Gas Corporation (PetroVietnam) into a new economic group, helping the local petroleum industry develop in a sustainable way and ensure the national energy security, Vietnam's biggest oil and gas producer said Tuesday.

The Oil and Gas Group, to be officially established as a holding company in mid-September, will engage in different business scopes with major ones being oil and gas exploration, production, processing and distribution, the producer, PetroVietnam, said, noting that it will also participate in importing and exporting petroleum-related goods, generating electricity, and running finance, securities, banking and insurance services.

Vietnam exported more than 11.1 million tons of crude oil totaling nearly 5.8 billion U.S. dollars in the first eight months of this year, down 6.5 percent in volume but up 20.3 percent in value against the same period last year, according to the country's General Statistics Office.

In the eight-month period, it imported over 7.7 million tons of petroleum products worth nearly 4.2 billion dollars, down 3.8 percent in volume but up 25 percent in value.

Vietnam targets production of 18 million tons of crude oil and 7 billion cubic meters of gas this year, said PetroVietnam.

The country is expected to import only 4 million tons of petroleum products in 2010, since it is building several oil refineries in the coming years. Its demand for petroleum products in 2010 is estimated at 18-19 million tons, according to local economic experts.

In late 2005, Vietnam started to construct its first oil refinery with an annual refining capacity of 6.5 million tons in central Quang Ngai province. The refinery will come into operation in late 2008 or early 2009.

Source: Xinhua