$1.2 bln Block B-O Mon gas pipeline project due to come on stream in 2027

A $1.27-billion undersea pipeline is set to start pumping gas to the O Mon gas-to-power complex, located in Vietnam's Mekong Delta city of Can Tho, in 2027.

In preparation for the upcoming pipeline project, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha signed off on a compensation, support, and resettlement policy for those affected by the project on Monday.

The pipeline, 51% held by state-run PV Gas, will become part of the $12 billion Block B – O Mon gas-to-power complex chain. It will be the longest of its kind in Vietnam, with a total length of 431 kilometers, including 329 km undersea and 102 km onshore.

When completed, it will transport natural gas from Block B to the O Mon power complex, with a designed capacity of 18.3 million cubic meters per day. The pipeline will operate until 2049.

Located in the Malay-Tho Chu basin off southwest Vietnam, Block B is the country’s second-largest upstream gas project behind Ca Voi Xanh (Blue Whale). Its investors are Petrovietnam, Petrovietnam Exploration & Production, Japan’s Mitsui Oil Exploration (MOECO), and PTT Exploration and Production Public Company (PTTEP).

The 3,810-MW O Mon power complex comprises the O Mon 1, O Mon 2, O Mon 3, and O Mon 4 power plants, with a total designed annual capacity of 22 billion kWh.

The O Mon 1 power plant is already operational, and the O Mon 2, 3 and 4 power facilities are set to begin operations in 2026, 2027, and 2028, respectively.

Petrovietnam will be the sole buyer of the gas produced from Block B, and will on-sell the entire volume to the O Mon power complex.