Petrovietnam is “flexibly adapting” to the pandemic in order to continue growth. — Photo courtesy of PetroVietnam

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam’s State-owned oil and gas group PetroVietnam has shown remarkable resilience in reaching its revenue targets, despite the hardships caused by the pandemic.

In September, the group's production and business activities faced widespread disruption due to social distancing, particularly to supply chains for petroleum products. However, PetroVietnam implemented a series of measures to manage the situation and maintain their business activities.

This has ensured Petrovietnam’s crude oil output reached 8.2 million tonnes in the first nine months of this year, 13 per cent higher than was forecast. Total revenue hit VNĐ437.8 trillion (US$19 billion), exceeding its target by 16 per cent, CEO Lê Mạnh Hùng said in the group’s business update on Monday.

As of the end of September, the group’s contribution to the State budget also increased 17 per cent year-on-year to VNĐ66 trillion.

PetroVietnam also saw success in investment activities. Sư Tử Trắng oil field has been brought into production as planned. Development projects in BK-18A and BK-19 oil fields are also on schedule and are ready to be being operations by the end of October and November, respectively.

The group is working hard to kick-start Sông Hậu 1 and Thái Bình 2 coal-fired power plants. Sông Hậu 1 is expected to begin commercial operation in early November.

On September 9, Fitch Ratings assigned a standalone credit profile of BB+ and asserted the long-term foreign currency Issuer Default Rating at BB with a “positive outlook” to PetroVietnam. This is the third year in a row Fitch Ratings evaluated PetroVietnam’s credit rating at BB+, reflecting the group’s impressive achievements in recent years amid the pandemic.

In the fight against COVID-19, PetroVietnam has donated nearly VNĐ555 billion to the National Vaccine Fund and by the end of September had spent VNĐ776 billion to support prevention efforts. Vaccination campaigns within the group have also been sped up to ensure the workforce can operate. So far, most of the group’s employees have been given the COVID-19 vaccine. — VNS