Chevron, Mitsui, PetroVietnam sign Vietnam gas accord

Chevron Corp., the second-biggest US energy company, Mitsui & Co., and Vietnam Oil & Gas Group signed an initial agreement for a US$4 billion project to develop offshore natural-gas fields in Vietnam.

Under the non-binding accord, the three companies together with Thailand’s state-controlled PTT Exploration & Production Ltd., will start design work for the project to develop two blocks named B&48/95 and 52/97, Mitsui Oil Exploration Co., a unit of Tokyo-based trading house Mitsui & Co., said in an e-mailed statement Friday.

Chevron’s Vietnamese unit, holding a 42.38 percent stake in the B&48/95 block and 43.40 percent in 52/97, is the operator of the project, which entails production of natural gas and construction of pipelines, according to the statement. Commercial production is slated to begin in 2014.

Estimated reserves in the joint development area overlapping the two blocks total 4.2 trillion cubic feet, according to the statement. The size of reserves in the two blocks is unknown. The project partners plan to sell the fuel to power utilities in Vietnam and other customers.

thanhnien, Bloomberg

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