Central bank asks Vietnamese lenders to support petrol importers

The State Bank of Vietnam has required commercial lenders to supply fuel importers sufficient loans to ease current petroleum shortages.

"Petroleum products are strategic and important items that can make direct impacts on macro-economic stability and production, as well as business and civic activities," the State Bank (SBV) said in a dispatch to executives of domestic lenders Monday.

The regulator stressed that commercial banks’ meeting the importers’ credit demand would help ensure domestic supply.

Vietnam, with a population of almost 100 million people, imported about 7.1 million tons of petrol products in the first 10 months of this year, increasing by 22.7% from a year earlier, according to customs data.

The period’s crude oil imports increased by 17% to 9.4 million tons, going to the country’s two operational refineries - Nghi Son and Dung Quat, both in the central region.

Nghi Son, the largest, is importing 2.52 million tons of crude oil between October and December while running at full capacity to help maintain stable supplies of petroleum products in the domestic market, the complex has said. The refinery’s capacity is 200,000 barrels per day.

Dung Quat, with a capacity of 148,000 barrels per day, said it started to run at 112% of its capacity at the end of October 5 from a previous 109%, also to help maintain supply. Normally, the complex runs at 103% of its capacity but had earlier upped to 105% and 107%, then to 109%.