Special Report: Global Financial
Crisis
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HANOI, Nov. 26
(Xinhua) -- The Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) has announced
that it will sell up to 30 percent of its shares in oil refineries to foreign
partners that are ready and willing to supply crude oil to those plants on a
long-term basis, Vietnam News Agency reported on Wednesday.
This announcement was delivered by Petro Vietnam's General Director Tran
Ngoc Canh at the West Pacific gas industry's 10th conference-cum-exhibition that
took place recently. And he also said that the percentage of stocks to be sold
may be increased in special cases.
A part from the country's first oil refinery, namely Dung Quat, currently
being built in the central Quang Ngai province of Vietnam and scheduled for
completion in February 2009, PetroVietnam has plans to build two other plants.
One of these two, with an estimated output capacity of 200,000 barrels a
day and investment capital of 6 billion U.S. dollars, is to be built in the
central province of Thanh Hoa, Vietnam, in a joint venture with the Kuwait
international oil and gas group and the Idemitsu Kosan group of Japan.
The other, also with a production capacity of 200,000 barrels a day, is
scheduled to be built in the southern region, the country's largest consumer
center. The project is still at the discussion stage with foreign partners,
including the Venezuelan National Oil and Gas Group.
Despite being the third largest producer of crude oil in Southeast Asia
with an average output of 300,000 barrels a day, Vietnam still has to import
petroleum due to lack of oil refineries.
The country will need to buy about 26.5 tons of crude oil to supply the
three refineries when they are put into operation, said PetroVietnam.
Currently, BP Plc and Royal Dutch Shell Plc, as well as a number of
companies from Venezuela and the Middle East are in a race to become a supplier
of crude oil to Vietnam.
Once operational, these three oil refineries will help Vietnam to reduce
its import and trade deficit.
