On 21 March, Gazprom’s delegation, headed by Vitaly Markelov, Deputy Chairman of the Management Committee, undertook a working visit to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV).

According to a statement published on Gazprom's website, a working meeting between Vitaly Markelov and Nguyen Quoc Khanh, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Vietnam Oil and Gas Group Petrovietnam, took place in Hanoi.

The parties discussed various areas of cooperation, including those of the Gazpromviet joint venture, as well as the opportunities for supplying liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Vietnam.

The statement also says that a meeting was held between Vitaly Markelov and Nguyen Vu Truong Son, CEO of Petrovietnam. The sides reviewed the progress of implementation of the existing contracts and agreements in the areas of exploration, production and sales of hydrocarbons, and discussed participation in new joint projects in Vietnam, Russia and third countries. Opportunities for cooperation in the sphere of power generation were also among the key topics of the discussions.

The parties paid special attention to continuing joint implementation of the natural gas for vehicles (NGV) project in Vietnam, which seeks to increase the efficiency of transportation systems of various cities and provinces of Southern Vietnam and improve the environmental situation in this most densely populated region of the country. In particular, the project envisages the construction of an LNG plant and NGV filling stations.

Following the meeting, it was decided by the parties that in order to reach the main objectives of NGV market development in Vietnam, Gazprom and Petrovietnam will shortly prepare a comprehensive plan of action (“a roadmap”)) for expanding the use of natural gas as a vehicle fuel.

Andrey Fick, Managing Director of Gazprom International, the sole specialized operator of upstream projects abroad, also participated in the work of Gazprom's delegation.

BACKGROUND

Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group Petrovietnam specializes in exploration, production, refining, transportation and sales of hydrocarbons.

Vietgazprom JOC (Gazprom - 50%, Petrovietnam - 50%) carries out exploration works on blocks 112 and 129-132 offshore Vietnam. Since 2013, Gazprom International has been engaged in commercial gas production in partnership with Petrovietnam at the Moc Tinh and Hai Thach fields located within the 05-2 and 05-3 license blocks offshore Vietnam (recoverable gas reserves – 35.9 billion cubic meters, gas condensate – 15.2 million tonnes).

In 2009, Gazprom and Petrovietnam signed an Agreement on Strategic Partnership, which foresees collaboration of the two companies in oil and gas projects in Russia, Vietnam and third countries.

In 2014, Gazprom and Petrovietnam signed the Framework  Agreement on the terms of implementation of projects for development of the Nagumanovskoye oil and gas condensate field and Severo-Purovskoye gas condensate field. The development licenses belong to Gazpromviet (Gazprom - 51%, Petrovietnam - 49%).

In 2015, a Russian-Vietnamese venture for NGV fuel was registered, formed by Gazprom International (35.5%), Gazprom Gas-Engine Fuel LLC (35.5%) and PETROVIETNAM GAS (29%). The objectives of the joint venture include construction and commissioning of natural gas liquefaction units, cryogenic and multi-fuel filling stations, refueling terminals for water transport; LNG delivery, storage and regasification systems; vehicle re-equipment and technical maintenance points, and other gas-engine infrastructure objects for servicing vehicles and machinery fueled by natural gas.