29/1/2018 – PetroVietnam Gas (PV Gas). a state-owned Vietnamese energy firm is seeking government approval for a divestment plan to sell 30 percent of its stock to a strategic partner by 2020.
According to Le Nhu Linh, the Chairman of PV Gas, the approved strategic partner is expected to be one of PV Gas’s existing partners.
Shell, Tokyo Gas, and Total, a French oil and gas company, who have worked many years with PV Gas have all expressed their interests to be a strategic partner of PV Gas.
At present, the state holds 95 percent stake in PV Gas, while foreign ownership is just 3.3 percent. If the partnership is successful, the state’s ownership will be reduced to 65 percent by 2020.
Besides augmenting state coffers, this divestment of PV Gas is also expected to help improve technological inputs to enhance the efficiency of its core business and increase transparency.
The company has also been studying the recent shares auctions of Vietnam Dairy Products and Saigon Beer Alcohol Beverage (Sabeco) to help with its own divestment.
On the other hand, PV Gas also revealed at a recent meeting, that it has set aside US$3.5 billion on investment projects, including gas fields, pipelines, warehouses, and imported capital equipment.
The company currently draws gas from four fields including Cuu Long, Nam Con Son, PM3 and Thai Binh, with a total capacity of more than 9 billion cubic meters of gas in recent years, more than 1 million tons of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and 70,000 tons of condensate.
With the price of US$50 a barrel, PV Gas’s net sale in the past year has reached VND 64.8 trillion (about US$2.85 billion) and a net profit at VND 9.8 trillion (about US$431.2 million).
