Vietnam’s agriculture ministry and Italy’s energy giant Eni signed a cooperation agreement in identifying initiatives in the fields of agriculture-feedstock and carbon credit generation from nature-based carbon offset solutions.
According to the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed Tuesday, the two sides will explore opportunities to valorize residues from agro-industrial value chains to produce vegetable oils, which are not in competition with the food chain, for Eni’s biorefineries.
Potential opportunities for the regeneration of degraded, abandoned, or contaminated agricultural lands will also be evaluated, as a driver for rural development.
The MoU includes the possibility to cooperate over the theme of carbon credit generation from nature-based carbon offset activities aimed, for example, at avoiding deforestation, promoting the sustainable use of forests and the conservation of ecosystems such as mangroves, and supporting land management through climate-smart agricultural practices.
It is in line with the Vietnamese ministry’s goal to develop the agricultural sector with a sustainable approach, aiming to encourage an annual growth of 2.5-3% and increase the forest coverage to 42%. It also fits Eni’s strategy to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
Eni has been present in Vietnam since 2012 in the upstream sector, and currently operates five blocks all located in the Song Hong and Phu Khanh basins, offshore central Vietnam.
In line with Vietnam’s commitment of zero emission in 2050 made at the COP 26, the agricultural sector has put forward a plan to reduce methane emissions by 30% in 2030 and then zero in 2050, said Deputy Minister Nguyen Hoang Hiep.
Hiep also lauded the cooperation between the two sides, especially forestation, carbon credit market, and use of agricultural byproducts in circular economic models.