MOSCOW (MRC) -- Vietnam on Sunday signed a deal with firms from Japan and Kuwait to build an oil refinery complex worth nearly USD9 billion as part of efforts to meet its growing energy needs, reported Hydrocarbonprocessing.
The Nghi Son refinery, which is due to start operating by 2017 in Thanh Hoa province, about 125 miles south of Hanoi, will turn Kuwaiti oil into gasoline and other petroleum products. It will be able to process 10 million tpy of crude oil, the government said. As MRC infomred earlier, the petrochemical complex in Vietnam’s Nghi Son Economic Zone will include a 200,000-b/d refinery, as well as the production of polypropylene (PP) and aromatics.
The Nghi Son Refinery and petrochemical project is a joint venture between four sides, with close to equal shares. Idemitsu Kosan and Kuwait Petroleum International each hold a 35.1% stake in the planned refinery, while PetroVietnam and Mitsui Chemicals own 25.1% and 4.7%, respectively.
A ground-breaking ceremony for the Nghi Son refinery was held in May 2008 but the project has suffered a number of delays. It is still unclear when construction will start, an official from PetroVietnam said.
The country's first refinery Dung Quat with the capacity of 6.5 million tpy of crude opened in central Vietnam in 2009 after lengthy delays.
PetroVietnam has said that it hopes the two refineries would satisfy 65% of the nation's oil and gas needs. It is also preparing for a third refinery project in southern Ba Ria-Vung Tau province.
MRC