Đinh La Thăng, former Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Vietnam Oil and Gas Group. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The Supreme People’s Procuracy has issued an indictment to prosecute Đinh La Thăng, former Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) on charges of violating regulations on construction works, causing serious consequences at the Petrochemical and Bio-Fuel JSC (PVB) - a subsidiary of this group.

His alleged accomplices, including Trịnh Xuân Thanh, former Chairman of the PetroVietnam Construction Corporation (PVC) and 10 other high-ranking officials and staff of PVB, will also be prosecuted for the same charge.

According to the indictment, Thăng signed a decision approving an ethanol factory project in the northern province of Phú Thọ in 2007. A year later, PetroVietnam established a steering committee led by Thăng to launch biofuel projects.

PVB later invited bidding for a package TK05 named “Design, procurement, supply of equipment and construction of ethanol factory in the north”.

Though six contractors were unqualified, Thăng and his subordinates signed many documents directing joint venture PVC/Alfta Laval/Delta-T to join the project.

The project was suspended in March 2013 due to the joint venture’s poor capability, resulting in a State budget loss of more than VNĐ540 billion (US$23.2 million).

Thăng, also a former Minister of Transport and former Secretary of HCM City People's Committee, was given a total of 30 years in prison in 2018 for his involvement in two other cases at PetroVietnamthat caused huge losses to the State. — VNS