HÀ NỘI — Deputy Prime Minister Trịnh Đình Dũng urged the Việt Nam Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) to focus on restructuring and improving business efficiency in 2018.

Dũng at PetroVietnam’s conference to implement 2018 tasks held on Friday appreciated the efforts of PetroVietnam to achieve higher-than-target results in 2017 despite significant impact from low oil prices in the global market.

“The most difficult time of PetroVietnam is gradually over. Now, resources should be focused on restructuring the management system from the parent company to the affiliates to streamline and enhance operation and restructuring investments to prevent losses and enhance efficiency,” Dũng said. “At the same time, PetroVietnam must hasten the application of industry 4.0 technologies to move towards sustainable development.”

Dũng asked PetroVietnam to effectively implement the oil and gas industry development strategy by 2025 with a vision to 2035.

He said the government would support the company in implementing major oil and gas projects.

Dũng urged PetroVietnam to speed up major projects that were making slow progress, such as the expansion of Dung Quất Oil Refinery, Nghi Sơn Oil Refinery, Petrochemical Complex in the southern region, Block B- Ô Môn gas pipeline, and Vũng Áng A, Thái Bình 2, Long Phú 1 and Sông Hậu 1 thermoelectricity plants.

Five inefficient projects must be handled thoroughly, including Đình Vũ polyester plant, Dung Quất shipyard and three bio-fuel plants, Dũng said.

PetroVietnam general director Nguyễn Vũ Trường Sơn said the company targeted to produce 22.83 million tonnes of oil in 2018, adding the group would hasten exploration this year to increase oil reserves.

In addition to this, PetroVietnam will closely monitor the fluctuations in global oil prices for timely measures to cope with the volatility.

PetroVietnam’s production output reached 25.41 million tonnes in 2017, 1.6 million tonnes higher than the target.

Its 2017 revenue reached VNĐ498 trillion (US$21.85 billion), exceeding the target by 13.8 per cent and rising by 10 per cent over 2016, while its pre-tax profit was VNĐ31.9 trillion, 92 per cent higher than the target.

The group contributed VNĐ97.5 trillion to the State budget last year, 30.8 per cent higher than the target. — VNS