The Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) has decided to form teams to handle its loss-making projects since the snail-pace progress of the process has displeased the Government (Photo: vneconomy.vn)
Hanoi (VNA) – The Vietnam National Oil and Gas
Group (PetroVietnam) has decided to form teams to handle its loss-making
projects since the snail-pace progress of the process has displeased the
Government.
The decision was announced at a recent meeting
between the corporation’s heads and representatives of the Ministry of Industry
and Trade (MoIT).
The taskforce teams will be responsible for drawing up concrete plans to handle
each project, which include detailed roadmaps, needed mechanisms and policies,
and submit them to the corporation’s leaders for further steps.
The move came just a few days after Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue openly
criticised PetroVietnam for the ineffective handling of unprofitable projects at a meeting with the MoIT and some State-owned
enterprises to seek measures for dealing with 12 loss-making projects, five of
them at PetroVietnam.
They include three biofuel factories in Phu Tho,
Quang Ngai and Binh Phuoc provinces, the PVTex Dinh Vu Yarn Plant and Dung
Quat ship-building plant.
Of the five projects, the MoIT decided to
declare bankruptcy for the Phu Tho Ethanol Biofuel Plant and Dung Quat Ship
Building Industry Company.
The MoIT asked PetroVietnam to work with its
partners to restart the Dung Quat ethanol biofuel project in the central
province of Quang Ngai and the Dinh Vu yarn plant in the northern city of Hai
Phong, then offload the State capital in the two projects.
[PetroVietnam subsidiary exploits 10 million Sahara oil barrels]
For the Binh Phuoc ethanol biofuel project, the
MoIT asked PetroVietnam to work with foreign investors to resume the project
because it is involved in the replacement of RON92 petrol with E5 biofuel
starting January 1, 2018.
At the meeting, PetroVietnam General Director
Nguyen Vu Truong Son admitted that the handling of these projects yielded no
progress over the past year. “All activities just stopped at holding debates and
discussion. Almost no work has been implemented,” he said. He attributed
the problem to hurdles in financial mechanisms, particularly the shortage of
money.
For example, restarting the Dinh Vu plant
required a big sum of money, which the company could not secure. The
finalisation of Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) agreements for
the biofuel factories in Phu Tho and Quang Ngai also required additional bank
loans, and this required guidance from MoIT and the Government, he said.
PetroVietnam Deputy Director General Nguyen Huu
Dung said the corporation had prepared various plans, such as asset auctioning
and divestment, but was unable to implement them because it did not get funds
from the State.
Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Hoang Quoc
Vuong, however, reaffirmed that the Government was resolute about not spending
more money on these projects. He told the companies in charge of the projects
to carry out measures like establishing financial reserve funds, filing for
bankruptcy or selling projects to other investors to raise the needed money.
“But top priority should be given to restarting
the projects before divestment. So those which are joint stock companies must
call shareholders’ meeting to finalise solutions for capital increase and report
to the Government before July 15. In case the Government does not approve the
capital increase solutions, the companies should switch to Plan B of selling
the projects to other investors,” he said.-VNA