Petrovietnam units sign LNG supply deal for trial run of Vietnam’s first LNG power plants

PV Power and PV Gas, two units of state-owned Petrovietnam, have signed an LNG supply deal for trial operation of Nhon Trach 3 and Nhon Trach 4, Vietnam’s first LNG-to-power plants.

The duo signed an agreement on Tuesday, according to a Wednesday announcement of PV Gas.

The supply is equivalent to the amount an LNG tanker can contain, solely for the two power plants, it said.

The move can fortify PV Gas’s role as a leading supplier of gas, especially LNG, for energy in Vietnam, the firm noted.

The deal is a major achievement of both PV Gas and PV Power in utilizing imported LNG as fuel for gas-fired power plants in Vietnam, offsetting the decreasing supply of natural gas in the country's southeastern region, according to PV Gas chairman Nguyen Thanh Binh and PV Power chairman Hoang Van Quang.

It is estimated that the natural gas supply in southeastern Vietnam is decreasing by one billion cubic meters yearly. The collaboration can help push LNG to become the main fuel for gas-fired power plants in Vietnam, PV Gas said.

PV Power is the main investor of the 1,600 MW Nhon Trach 3 and Nhon Trach 4 plants, with a total investment of $1.4 billion. Construction of the project in the southern province of Dong Nai began in 2021.

They are expected to provide nine billion kWh of electricity to the national grid annually and contribute VND18 trillion ($711.75 million) to the provincial budget annually.

Nhon Trach 3 and Nhon Trach 4 are set to begin commercial operations in June and September 2025, respectively, according to PV Power.