PetroVietnam grants Vietnam Oil and Gas Group rights to distribute its products

State-run Vietnam Oil and Gas Group has given the go signal to PetroVietnam Oil Corporation (PV Oil) to distribute products from the Nghi Son oil refinery when the plant is fully operational. Although the scale of the distribution joint venture has not yet been determined, PV OIL will own a 51% stake in the new company. Plans to build the US$8-10 billion Nghi Son oil refinery in Hanoi had been delayed several times due to financial constraints and the probability of a withdrawal by the Kuwaiti partner. But foreign contractors of French Technip, Japanese JGC and Spanish Tecnicas Reunidas said they are all set to begin construction of the refinery during the first quarter of this year. The contractors have already cleared more than 400 hectares of land and 860 families had been relocated. The refinery will process sour Kuwaiti crude oil into oil and petrol products. It will have a capacity of 10 million tons of crude oil per year, which is one and a half times higher than the annual capacity of the Dung Quat oil refinery in Quang Ngai. (February 15, 2012)