Shell to expand business in Vietnam
Dutch energy and petrochemical company Shell will focus its Vietnamese investment in the oil sector, after transferring its liquefied petroleum gas business in Vietnam to Thailand's Siam Gas Company.
Shell aims to double its oil business in Vietnam by 2015, seeking to expand its share of the oil market in Vietnam from 8-10 percent to 13 percent. The company estimates the growth rate of domestic oil demand to be as high as 8 percent, 4-6 percent higher than the average rate in the Asian market.
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The company's General Director Le Duy Thanh said that Shell is also considering to invest in petrol if it can secure the relevant license.
The firm is also re-evaluating investments in its two bitumen factories in southern Dong Nai Province's Go Dau Industrial Zone and central Nghe An Province's Cua Lo. However, while the firm wants its bitumen business to better suit the market in Vietnam, Thanh said the possibility of selling the two factories has not been raised.
Official details on the sale of Shell's gas business to Siam Gas as well as the company's strategy are expected to be announced at the beginning of next month, after all legal procedures are completed.
The company said that all of its business activities will continue as usual until the transfer is completed.
Thanh confirmed the restructuring of its investments in Vietnam is in line with the company's strategy of refocusing target markets, investing in less markets but on larger scales.
Shell returned to Vietnam in 1988 and developed a nation-wide gas distribution system after the domestic Law on Foreign Investment was issued.