Kuwait intends to keep its 35.1 percent stake in Vietnam’s second refinery, planned to be ready in 2014, the middle eastern country’s oil minister said.
Speaking in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi, Sheikh Ahmad al Abdullah al Sabah said: “We got assurance today that the government is serious about giving us all the necessary agreements or approvals."
He added: “Once the refinery is completed, it’s assured that there will be exports of 200,000 barrels of crude oil to Vietnam.”
Japanese oil refiner Idemitsu Kosan and its partners delayed a decision on investing $5.8 billion in the refinery, putting off its potential start date to 2014, the company said Sept 17.
Idemitsu and Kuwait Petroleum International each have a 35.1 percent stake in the 200,000 barrel a day project at Nghi Son, while state controlled Vietnam Oil & Gas Group holds 25.1 percent and Mitsui Chemicals has 4.7 percent.
Kuwait hopes the Vietnamese government will approve the project “within the next few weeks,” said Sheikh Ahmad, who is visiting the country to speed up negotiations on the plant.
Vietnam’s first oil refinery, which started commercial production at Dung Quat in February last year, has the capacity to supply 148,000 barrels a day, a third of the country’s 2010 fuel demand.
Previously, the Southeast Asian nation imported almost all of its oil products.
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