Dungquat’s refinery upgrade and expansion plan estimated to cost $2 billion

PetroVietnam Deputy General Director Le Manh Hung acknowledged during a recent meeting with the Authority of Quang Ngai, where the Dungquat refinery is located, that the plan to upgrade and expand this refinery shall be kicked off in Q.1 2015, clear site should be available in Q2 2016, and construction will commence in Q.3 2017 and expectedly complete in 2021.

The upgrade and expansion plan is estimated to cost between 1.8 to 2 billion USD and shall raise the refinery’s annual capacity from the current 6.5 million tons of crude oil to 10 million tons.

Surroundings of the current refinery

Much hope is being casted on the formation of a giant refining-petrochemical center in the Dung Quat area where there would be many petrochemical plants to follow, not just an alone oil refinery because after upgrade and expansion, the refinery can handle more diversified types of crude oil, with more types of by-products to be used as input materials for downstream petrochemical plants. 

Research and preparation work for this project started since 2009 - the time when the Dungquat oil refinery was completed and put into operation. According to the latest study, two options are now under consideration: the project shall be invested solely by Vietnam or it shall be joined by a foreign partner, possibly Russian Gazprom group.

The necessary area for the upgrade and expansion of the refinery area is 108.2 hectares, of which 94 hectares shall be used for construction works, the safety corridor is around 14.2 hectares. In order to get such space for expansion, it’s projected to relocate around 400 families away from the area and remove some existing civil facilities.

In the latest event, Deputy Prime Minister has ordered PetroVietnam to complete the investment Project and submit to the Industry and Trade Ministry in November this year for evaluation. The project shall be evaluated by a Council to be set up by Ministry of Industry and Trade, with the participation of related Ministries and Quang Ngai province People’s Committee, and then be reported to Prime Minister by the end of 2014.

JFE discontinues plan for steelworks in Vietnam

In  a press release made on its website, JFE has officially announced its decision to quit involvement in the Guang Lian Steel project located in Dung Quat Economic Zone, Quang Ngai province, leaving E-United Group alone with the project.

The press release did not reveal the reasons for JFE Steel’s discontinuing the participation in the project; however, insiders tend to link this leaving decision to the fact of unapproved investment incentives and the fierce competitions from giant steel mills under construction in Vietnam and in the region.  The situation raises the questions over whether E-United Group would go on with the project and how it would arrange the finance to feed this big steelwork.

Source from Dungquat Economic Zone Authority was quoted as saying that if the investor wants to move on, it has to pledge to follow a clear construction road map otherwise the province would consider revoke the investment certificate, recover the allocated land, and pay back to the investor what it has spent legitimately.

In a report by local authority addressed to the government late 2012, the disbursed investment capital of the project was said to be valued at around $ 50 million then as declared by the investor.

While the 9.9 billion Formosa steel project is on its good progress in north central Ha Tinh province, it’s not clear to outsiders which path  the Guang Lian project is heading to.

Related News:

Guang Lian Steel Project in Dung Quat: in the balancing art of "give-and-take"

SCIC told to invest in Thai Nguyen steel project

Source: Saigon Times

Friday,  Aug 29,2014,22:51 (GMT+7)

HANOI – The Government has asked the State Capital Investment Corporation (SCIC) to pour capital in Thai Nguyen steel expansion project’s second phase, and urged banks to restructure debts to ease difficulties for the project owner.

According to the Prime Minister’s instructions, the project invested by Thai Nguyen Iron and Steel Corporation (TISCO) and still remaining uncompleted after seven years will continue to be implemented as proposed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

SCIC will have to draw up a capital contribution plan to pour at least VND1 trillion on behalf of the State. Capital contributed will be sourced from the Enterprise Reform Support Fund.

Over the past few years, apart from existing State stakes at some steel enterprises that were previously State-owned enterprises, the State has no longer poured capital in the industry. Vietnam Steel Corporation, the parent company of TISCO, has lagged behind due to the harsh competition in the steel industry from private and foreign-invested enterprises.

The aforementioned project has not been put into operation seven years after its commencement. The project’s investments were initially approved at VND3.84 trillion but have been revised up to VND8.1 trillion.

Some VND4.330 trillion has been disbursed, according to TISCO’s first-half report, but the project has ground to a halt since late last year as banks have stopped lending. This is also the second time in the past seven years the project has deadlocked due to a capital shortage.

As of June 30, 2014, TISCO owed VND7.541 trillion while its equity is only VND1.717 trillion. Due to a lack of capital, the second phase had to be suspended while pending instructions from the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Government.

While deciding to inject capital so that the investor can finish its project, the Government still requires the industry ministry and the steel corporation to be responsible for the cost-effectiveness of the project and appraise the feasibility of the borrowing plan.

The Thai Nguyen steel expansion plan’s second phase was approved in 2005 to have a capacity of 500,000 tons of steel billet and 500,000 tons of rolled steel, and is one of the projects of Group A to receive preferential loans of the Government.

However, at this moment when the project has fallen far behind schedule, the production capacity of the industry has doubled the demand and many steel plants have to run at less than 50% capacity to avoid inventories.

As a result, the industry ministry has asked the investor to invest in facilities to produce iron and steel billet first. With such an adjustment, only one-fourth of the project is finished while its investments have doubled.

Vung Ro - the third refinery project in Vietnam kicks off

Vietnam has begun construction of Vung Ro oil refinery and petrochemical project in Phu Yen province in the Southern Central Coast of Vietnam. The project, which has an investment of nearly $3.2 billion, is designed to have a capacity of refining 8 million tons of crude per year, and cover an area of 538 hectares, including the area to develop a supporting seaport, according to the Vietnam News Agency.

Groundbreaking Ceremony of Vung Ro Refinery & Petrochemical Project in the south central coast province Phu Yen.

The refinery configuration allows producing fuel products of high quality (LPG, Gasoline RON 92/95, Jet Fuel, Diesel, Fuel Oil) and petrochemical products (Benzene, Toluene, Mixed Xylene, Polypropylene). The products are said to satisfy both current Vietnam specifications and international standards.

Product Slates	VRP Blend (Yield, TPA)	Arabian Light (Yield, TPA)
LPG	388,293	236,307
Gasoline RON 92/95	2,168,403	2,011,559
Jet Fuel	665,546	528,828
Diesel	2,633,036	2,398,811
Fuel Oil	0	867,500
Benzene	73,217	44,069
Toluene	182,869	169,336
Mixed Xylenes	349,082	311,953
Polypropylene	564,222	390,375
Sulfur	7,981	94,037
Total	7,032,649	7,052,775

Source: VRP website

Upon completion, the refinery is expected to create around 1,300 jobs, not to mentioned around 15,000 headcounts shall involve in the construction period and around US$ 110 million of various taxes shall be paid per annum.

General layout of Vung Ro Refinery & Petrochemical Complex. Source: VRP

This is the third refinery project launched in Vietnam, after the Dungquat refinery operating since 2009 and the Nghi Son refinery being now under construction. The latest news from Binh Dinh Province Authority on 11^th Sept 2014also revealed that detailed ffeasibilitystudy for the US$ 22 billion refinery project of 400,000 bpd has been submitted to Vietnam Ministry of  Industry and Trade for consideration. This project is invested by Thailand-based PTT Group and Saudi Aramco Group and is expected to be joined by other partners.

Under the circumstances of several refineries to come on stream in the next few years, including the fact that the current Dung Quat refinery is working on upgrade and expansion plan, experts foresee the situation of fuel supply exceeding domestic demand; then there’s a high possibility that Vietnam would become a petroleum exporter in the future. 

Guang Lian Steel Project in Dung Quat: in the balancing art of "give-and-take"

Various news sources recently reported that authorities allowed corporate income tax rate of 10% to be applicable for only 15 years, instead of for the project's whole lifetime (nearly 69 years) as petitioned by by JFE Steel Corporation (Japan) regarding their tentative investment in the current Guang Lian steel mill project located in Dungquat Economic Zone in Quang Ngai province. This is one of petitioned-but-rejected incentive proposals made by the investor who is found to be in the dilemma of whether to going ahead with the project.

A rescuing hand for a steel mill in stagnancy?

Licensed in 2006, the sole investor for that giant project had been initially Tycoons Group (Taiwan), later joined another Taiwanese investor - E-United who became the majority stakeholder then, resulting in the increase of registered capital to $3 billion and changing the project name into Guang Lian Steel Mill. A commencement ceremony was organized in October 2007, followed by the construction of some civil works and ground piping, then all execution started to suspend since 2010 end until now. After 7 years of commencement, the project remains in a stagnant situation which has been raising much debates among related parties.

Early 2012, JFE expressed its intention to participating in the project, in the form of purchasing controlling stakes in the owners-fluctuating project to become the majority stakeholder (or the real owner), then raising the mill's capacity, changing the configurations to manufacture other types of steel products, and raising the project capital to $4.5 billion. According to its initial plan, the final decision on investment would be made in early 2013, to be followed by application for investment certificate amendment and construction kick-off in July 2013. However, this plan has not been materialized. A new plan was proposed for July 2014, and seems to be missed again.

Give-and-take dilemma

The JFE's participation is expected by local authorities to be the rescuing hand for the long stagnant steel mill project which is now leaving hundreds hectares of land in waste in dim hope. That's what JFE really means to the local community. However, the investor as normal is also keen on benefiting something from the local investment environment. "If, by the end of this year [2012], the study reaches a favorable conclusion, including the feasibility of developing required infrastructure and the availability of incentives, JFE Steel expects to partner with the E United Group to launch a steel-production operation in Vietnam", read a press release announced by JFE Steel in March 2012. 

After great efforts to make a pre-feasibility study available, in 2013, JFE wrote to the authorities to ask for additional incentives such as the allocation of 210 hectares of land and waters to increase the total project area to more than 700 hectares. The Japanese investor also insisted to ensure adequate water supply of 200,000 m3 per day, connecting  its electricity system to the national power grid, and especially the very preferential enterprise income tax for the entire project ..., stated by various reports by local government.

Most of the requirements on infrastructure seemed to get nod from the local government (Dung Quat Economic Zone Authority and Quang Ngai Provincial People's Committee). Quang Ngai Authorities was said to agree in principle to allocate additional 185 hectares of land, adjusting the master plan of Dungquat port complex No. 1 to arrange water area for extra terminals serving the steel mill, coordinating with water and power suppliers (both private and state-owned) to secure the utilities for this power-consuming project. 

Balancing art needs the balance.

However, the financial incentives prospects have been reportedly cashed dim light over the fate of the project. The investor petitioned to enjoy the preferable corporate income tax (CIT) rate of 10% applicable for the whole project lifetime (including for the expanded capacity when raising the investment capital from $3 billion to $ 4.5 billion); however, CIT rate of 10% was tentatively  approved to be applied for only the first 15 years for the expanded capacity, VOV quoted a representative from Quang Ngai authority as saying in July 2014. The source also revealed that the proposals of state budget covering the expenses of additional land compensation and port channel dredging was also turned down by the government, that means, the investor would have to handle these works at their own cost, if he wished to proceed with.

Which or what way to go?

Under such circumstances, it's not difficult to imagine how JFE is in the dilema of "give-and-take" when setting up their presence in Vietnam. At the end of 2012, Eiji Hayashida, president of JFE Steel was quoted as saying about JFE's plan for pouring capital to steel mill project in Dung Quat, “Things won’t go smoothly until we make sure that we’ll beat the competition as many projects are being lined up to build new mills in southern China and Vietnam.”, and “We initially said a conclusion will be reached by the end of this year [2012], but we’ll need a bit more time,” said in an interview 05 Dec 2012 at the company’s Tokyo headquarters. And it seems to outsiders that it's now late 2014 and even more time shall be needed.

Vietnam ranks 68th, up two, in global competitiveness report 2014-2015

While the region of Asia and Pacific is home to three of the 10 most competitive economies in the world: Singapore, Japan, and Hong Kong SAR and a further three economies are featured in the top 20; Vietnam advances 2 places to the rank of 68th out of 144 in the list, according to the Global Competitiveness Report 2014-2015 released by World Economic Forum. Vietnam is among the five largest Southeast Asian economies (ASEAN-5) featuring in the top half of the rankings, and making strides in the edition for 2014-2015. 

Steady improvement in the macro economy, public institution and labor market 

At the rank of 68th, Vietnam’s performance remained almost unchanged from the past 2 years (70/144 for the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014). Following an experience of high inflation in 2011, the country’s macroeconomic situation continues to improve (75th, up 12 positions), as inflation declined to 6.6 percent. Institutions pillar also receive a better assessment (92th, up six), on the basis of better property rights protection and improved efficiency. 

Comparison of the 12 GCI Pillars between Vietnam and Emerging & Development Asia. Source: World Economic Forum

According to WEF’s definition, the institutional environment is determined by the legal and administrative framework within which individuals, firms, and governments interact to generate wealth. The importance of a sound and fair institutional environment has become all the more apparent during the recent economic and financial crisis and is especially crucial for further solidifying the fragile recovery, given the increasing role played by the state at the international level and for the economies of many countries. 

In a region where many countries have poorly functioning labor markets, Vietnam ranks a satisfactory 49th, its best showing among the 12 pillars combined to determine the competitiveness index, especially thanks to the “pay and productivity” aspect ranking 23rd. The highest ranking pillar for Vietnam is the market size (34th). The quality of transport and energy infrastructures also improves slightly. 

Much concerns over access to financing and low readiness for technology 

Vietnam’s financial sector and its banks remain vulnerable. Technological readiness remains low (99th, up three). The country’s businesses are especially slow in adopting the latest technologies (with technology readiness ranking 99th) thus forfeiting significant productivity gains through technological transfer. The degree of business sophistication is low (106th, down eight), with companies typically operating toward the bottom of the value chain (nature of competitive advantage and value chain breadth rank extremely low at 128th, 112th respectively). 

Vietnam's GCI for 2014-2015. Source: World Economic Forum

The report also lists the most problematic factors for doing business in Vietnam, based on the opinions of respondents. Of major concerns are the factors of, among others, access to financing, inadequate educated workforce and policy instability.

150,000 DWT oil tanker accesses Dungquat SPM

According to news released by PVN, on 23^rd August 2014, Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical Company Limited (BSR) successfully received crude oil tanker of 150,000 DWT to import 1 million barrels of AZERI crude oil from Azerbaijan through the Single Point Mooring (SPM) system of Dung Quat Oil Refinery. This is the biggest first-ever oil tanker accessing this facility after 5 years of operation; in the past, only tankers of up to 110,000 DWT could visit here.

During the 2^ndoverall maintenance of the refinery which lasted 57 days, nearly 7,000 items were done with the involvement of 3,400 professional staffs of BSR, contractors, partners. It was divided into 5 main packages, notably the the package 4 was implemented by BSR themselves including the maintenance of rotating equipment, electrical equipment, automation equipment, a number of simple static devices and oil pipelines. Meanwhile, the repair of defects for thermal expansion joints EX-101 in RFCC workshop was conducted by Technip/JGC contractor (EPC contractor of Dung Quat Oil Refinery Plant) and connection of awaiting ends for SRU 2 project was implemented by JGC contractor.

The first 150,000 DWT Oil Tanker at Dungquat SPM. Photo courtesy: PVN

Following the successful maintenance and upgrading of single-point mooring buoy, BSR imported the first crude oil from tanker of 150,000 DWT instead of 110,000 DWT previously. At transformation cost of US$ 300,000 only, SPM system has been improved to receive crude oil vessels of double capacity from Aframax vessel size (80,000 - 110,000 DWT) to Suezmax vessel size (150,000 DWT). Currently, BSR is capable of receiving crude oil from different regions of the world such as West Africa, the Mediterranean ... to help diversify sources of crude oil for processing at Dung Quat Oil Refinery, improving efficiency, reducing production costs and saving USD 10-15 million .

It was the 398^thcrude oil vessel received BSR through this SPM since the plant was put into operation in 2009, with totally 31,288,140 million tons of crude oil handled, approximately 27,985,737 tons of products refined.

SOE equalization to fuel M&A activity

Experts forecast equitizing hundreds of State-owned enterprises (SOEs) between now and next year as ordered by the Government will lead to stronger merger and acquisition (M&A) activity in Vietnam, the Saigon Times Daily reported on August 12.

The M&A activity is also expected to accelerated by the fact that State business groups and corporations required to divest from non-core business areas (mostly including banking, real estate and securities investments) to focus on their respective core industries.  Thanks to that, SOEs will provide the market with a huge amount of capital via their divestments of non-core investments and equitation, and these are great opportunities for investors.

Sam Yoshida, senior managing director of Recof, an M&A consulting firm in Japan, was cited by the Saigon Daily as saying that more investors from this Northeastern Asian country in are keen on the Vietnamese market thanks to low labour cost, a plentiful supply of labour, political stability and great potential for growth.

It is expected that the target for 432 SOEs to go public by the end of 2015 is possible as the pace of SOE equalization in the past seven months of this year was fast, according to the Steering Committee for Enterprise Reform and Development. In the January-July period, State corporations and groups divested a total of 2.975 trillion VND, three times higher than that of last year, but the divestment process remained slow. There have been 76 enterprises restructured in the year to date, with 55 equitized, two dissolved, one sold, 15 merged and three filing for bankruptcy.

As of last month, the Prime Minister had approved the restructuring plans of 20 State groups and corporations, including Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex) which is scheduled to offer its initial public offering (IPO) on the Hochiminh Stock Exchange (HOSE) in September this year.

According to Vinatex’s equalization plan approved by the Government, the group has total chartered capital of 5 trillion VND. After the group goes public, the State will retain a 51% stake while 24% will be offered to strategic investors, 24.4% put up for auction and 0.6% sold to employees.

Another State corporation, Vietnam Airlines, is proceeding with a plan to launch an IPO later this year and sell shares to strategic investors around the end of this year. According to Decision by Minister of Transport, the value of holding company Vietnam Airlines was more than 57.1 trillion VND (over 2.7 billion USD) as of March 31 last year, with State capital making up more than 10.5 trillion VND. Vietnam Airlines wants to sell 25 percent of its chartered capital to investors at the IPO. Later, the State shares at this corporation will gradually lower to 65%.

Compiled from VNA & Saigon Daily

Development master plan set for Dungquat Port Complex II

Further to the expansion plan for Dung Quat Economic Zone which now covers an area of more than 45,000 hectares, a master plan to develop Dung Quat Port No. 2 in area of 1,850 hectares of land and waters has been revealed, following the approval by  Ministry of Transportation.

Dungquat Port II is designed into specialized berths dedicated to giant plants adjacent to port and the factories not adjacent but not so far away, and general cargos berths to be commonly used for the locality and the neighboring areas.

In the first phase of development expected to finish by 2020, the southern part of the port shall be built first, including a 450m long terminal for bulk cargos vessels of 200,000 DWT, 03 terminals for bulk general cargos vessels of 50,000DWT with combined berth length of 850m; a break water of 2,050m length; entrance channel of 300m width and depth of -20,5m. Further development shall be started in the northern part of the port complex in the second phase until 2025.

Then for the third phase until 2030, another terminal shall be constructed for general cargoes vessels of 50,000DWT, and around 11 terminals more are intended to set up after 2030.

Rubber-tired cranes exported at Doosan Vina Specialized Port located in the Dungquat Port Complex No. 1

The port complex No. 1 of Dungquat is now almost fully occupied, including the specialized berths for Dungquat Shipyard (dock for building ships), for Korean-invested Doosan Vina to export huge structures of boilers, cranes, desalination plants … and for the pending Guanglian steel mill. The current port also includes berths of Gemadept and PTSC for general cargoes vessels, where woodchips is extensively exported in recent years. Embedded along the huge break water of the port are petroleum jetties where oil products made at Dungquat Refinery is loaded to oil vessels.

Decision by Ministry of Transportation 2955 on the master plan of Dungquat Port Complex II