Deputy PM Trịnh Đình Dũng (second, right) and Soco International Plc CEO Ed Story (middle) meet on August 28. — VNA/VNS Photo Văn Điệp

HÀ NỘI — London-based SOCO International Plc hopes to expand its investment, exploration and exploitation, and improve the output of oil and gas in Vietnam, SOCO President and CEO Ed Story said on Wednesday.

At a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Trịnh Đình Dũng in Hà Nội, Story said the group has invested more than US$1 billion in the oil and gas sector in Việt Nam over the past 19 years. 

With the capital, the SOCO has become the biggest British investor in the Southeast Asian nation, he said, adding that the group has contributed $3.3 billion to the host country’s budget, employed more than 1,000 locals and provided $2.5 million for local social welfare activities.

For his part, Deputy PM Dũng spoke highly of SOCO’s oil and gas exploration and exploitation in Việt Nam’s continental shelf, as well as its contributions to the country’s budget, job creation and social welfare activities. 

The Vietnamese Government always creates favourable conditions for businesses, including SOCO, to invest in the oil and gas sector, contributing to raising oil and gas output and operation efficiency in the country, he said. —VNS