US firms interested in renewables, chips in Vietnam: consul general

American companies have a strong interest in renewable energy development in Vietnam thanks to the country’s carbon neutrality goal by 2050, as well as global supply chain diversification plans including investment in the semiconducting sector, the U.S. consul general in Ho Chi Minh City said Wednesday.

“Climate and energy goals are hard and challenging to reach,” Susan Burns told Vietnamese reporters in the city, where she took her consul general post last September.

“Renewables anywhere in the world needs lots of investment and expertise and time,” the diplomat said, adding that her government was seeking to help Vietnam achieve its climate change and clean energy goals.

Due to global disruption in the semiconductor supply chain, American companies need to diversify supply sources and Vietnam is a destination for their consideration, Burns said.

According to her, Vietnam and the U.S. are seeking to elevate their comprehensive partnership to a strategic partnership, and continue to expand bilateral relations in numerous areas including investment, trade, tourism, and education. Therefore, there would be more investment opportunities for businesses.

The two countries will this year celebrate the 10th anniversary of their comprehensive partnership and they see the breadth of cooperation on a wide range of issues, Burns said. The U.S. government looks forward to welcoming Vietnam to the U.S. for the APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade meetings and the Leaders’ Summit in May and November 2023, respectively.

Burns added the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi and Consulate in HCMC are working closely with AmCham Vietnam, with three chapters in Hanoi, HCMC, and Danang each, to strengthen the important trade relationship between the two countries.

The Biden Administration’s current priorities for Asia-Pacific include the ongoing negotiations on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, expected to help advance sustainable, resilient, and inclusive economic growth throughout the region and in the U.S.

According to data from the U.S. Trade Representative Office, Vietnam was the U.S.’s 28th largest goods export market in 2020. U.S. goods exports to Vietnam in 2020 were $9.9 billion, down 8.4% from 2019 but up 167% from 2010.

Vietnam was the U.S.’s sixth largest supplier of goods imports in 2020, and U.S. goods imports from Vietnam totaled $79.6 billion in 2020, up 19.8% from 2019, and up 436% from 2010.