Projected Surge in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Inflows Expected for Vietnam This Year

On March 20, discussions about investing in liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects in Vietnam were held during a meeting between Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Sinh Nhat Tan and Novatek Group, Russia’s largest LNG producer.

Novatek is leading an integrated power plant project in Ca Na, Ninh Thuan province. This 1.5GW project is being developed by a consortium of investors including Total Gas & Power Business Services S.A.S, Siemens Aktiengesellschaftm JSC, Zarubezhneft, and Novatek.

E.N. Golm, Director of Business Development at Novatek, stated, “Apart from the Ca Na project, we are closely monitoring the overall LNG industry in Vietnam.”

The Ninh Thuan People’s Committee has issued a decision recognizing the consortium of investors qualified for implementing phase 1 of the Ca Na LNG Power Centre project.

Other recent developments in the sector include an announcement in January from Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. regarding the establishment of Thai Binh LNG Power JSC for a new project in Thai Binh province, in collaboration with Truong Thanh Vietnam Group and Japan’s Kyuden International Corporation.

The project encompasses an offshore terminal and a 1.5GW natural gas-fired power plant, with a capacity of 1,500MW and an estimated total investment of around $2 billion.

Similarly, Singapore-based Atlantic, Gulf and Pacific LNG (AG&P), a subsidiary of the US investment and development firm Nebula Energy, has acquired a 49 per cent stake in the Cai Mep LNG Terminal located in Ba Ria-Vung Tau province.

According to Power Development Plan VIII, Vietnam aims to construct 13 additional LNG power plants by 2030, with a total capacity of 22,400MW, and two plants with a capacity of 3,000MW by 2035. Currently, the 13 power plants have approval in principle, with five under construction and four with investors.