Vietnam has called for investment from Saudi oil giant Saudi Aramco in its petrochemical and oil refinery projects, the government in Hanoi said in a statement.
The call for investment comes after a meeting between Vietnam’s Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, the Governor of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth Public Investment Fund (PIF) Yasir Al-Rumayyan and CEO of the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) Sultan Abdulrahman Al-Marshad in Riyadh.
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According to a government statement cited by Reuters, Chinh suggested a meeting between Aramco and Vietnam’s state oil firm Petrovietnam company officials to discuss details of the investment projects.
“Aramco is interested in exploring opportunities to invest in Vietnam, particularly in petrochemical and refinery projects,” the statement said.
Vietnam has lately managed to present itself as an increasingly attractive FDI destination for Western companies seeking to de-couple and de-risk their economies from China’s supply chain. In the first six months of 2023, Hanoi attracted over $10bn in FDI projects, a 0.8% increase from the previous year.
In addition to the call for investment in the petrochemical and oil refinery industries, the Southeast Asian country has also proposed that Hanoi and Riyadh establish a joint investment fund similar to those set up between Saudi Arabia and other countries.
The PIF is one of the world’s largest sovereign funds, containing six investment portfolios, four local and two global. So far, the PIF has invested $160m through indirect investment in Vietnam.
