Minister of Industry and Trade attends Russian Energy Week

Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien (left) and Russian Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov sign the protocol amending the inter-governmental agreement on further cooperation in geological exploration and oil and gas exploitation

During the two-day visit, Minister Dien had working sessions with Russian Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov and Russian Deputy Minister of Economic Development V.E. Ilichev, held talks with major Russian energy firms, and attended the opening ceremony of the Vietnamese Days in Russia. On the sidelines of the Russian Energy Week International Forum, Minister Dien and Minister Nikolai Shulginov signed two cooperation agreements between the two governments in the field of geological exploration and oil and gas exploitation.

Themed “New reality of world energy: Creating the future,” the forum was attended by more than 4,000 guests from 60 countries. 2023 was the second consecutive year the Vietnamese Government has sent the Minister of Industry and Trade to attend the forum, affirming that energy is a traditional area of Vietnam-Russia cooperation and a pillar of the bilateral strategic comprehensive partnership.

On October 12, Minister Dien had a meeting with Russian Deputy Minister of Economic Development V.E. Ilichev. The two officials acknowledged the recovery of bilateral trade after a plunge in 2022.

According to data from the Russian side, in the first seven months of 2023, bilateral trade reached about US$2.7 billion, a year-on-year increase of 6.2 percent. Aiming to boost economic, trade and investment cooperation, the two sides agreed to strive to remove difficulties related to payment, transportation and travel between the two countries.

The two officials discussed bilateral cooperation in the fields of industry, agriculture, exploration and exploitation of natural resources, and agreed to seek cooperation possibilities in the fields of green transformation, energy transition, climate change prevention, circular economy, science and technology, and creative innovation.

On the sidelines of the forum, Minister Dien also met major oil and gas companies of Russia: Zarubezhneft, Gazprom and Novatek, and talked with them about the implementation of their projects in Vietnam and plans for expansion of their operations in the country.

Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien works with representatives of Novatek Group

Promoting trade connections

Addressing the opening ceremony of the Vietnamese Days in Russia, Minister Dien emphasized that in the current context, it’s extremely necessary to strengthen and increase bilateral economic cooperation to prevent supply chain disruptions and promote socioeconomic development in each country.

With the participation of more than 50 Vietnamese companies in the fields of farm produce, food, beverage, garments, engineering and manufacturing, the Vietnamese Days in Russia program comprised activities aimed at connecting more than 150 businesses of the two countries and facilitating Russian consumers’ access to quality, reasonably priced Vietnamese goods.

Russian Deputy Minister of Economic Development V.E. Ilichev spoke about Russia’s interest in expanding economic, trade and investment cooperation with Vietnam. He said that Russia is willing to coordinate with the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade and other relevant agencies to organize additional events aimed at connecting the business communities of the two countries, contributing to strengthening the bilateral strategic comprehensive partnership.

At his working session with Russian Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov, Minister Dien and the Russian official talked about the progress of ongoing bilateral cooperation projects in the fields of oil, gas and energy, as well as new cooperation projects in these fields.

On this occasion, the two ministers signed a protocol amending the inter-governmental agreement on further cooperation in geological exploration and oil and gas exploitation.