San Francisco Frontiers - Vietnam, Russia to sign energy deal: Hanoi

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's trip to the major oil-producing nation from Sunday to Wednesday comes as Vietnam seeks to shore up its fuel reserves amid global supply disruptions due to the war in the Middle East.

His visit will focus on deepening ties with Russia and expanding cooperation in trade, investment and energy, Vietnam's government said in a statement on Sunday.

"During this visit, a series of important agreements related to nuclear power plant projects, as well as cooperation in energy and oil and gas will be signed," another statement from Hanoi said on Saturday.

"Cooperation in oil and gas energy will be reinforced in all fields of trade, exploration, extraction, and human resource training," it added.

Since the US-Israel war against Iran began in late February, sparking fuel price hikes and fears of shortages around the world, the cost of 95-octane petrol and diesel in Vietnam, a manufacturing hub, has soared by 50 percent and 70 percent, respectively.

Chinh held phone talks recently asking for fuel support from several countries, including Qatar, Kuwait, Algeria and Japan, according to Hanoi.

He is scheduled to meet with his Russian counterpart, Mikhail Mishustin, on Monday, Moscow said.

They will discuss "issues of Russian-Vietnamese trade", with a focus on implementing joint projects in the energy and other sectors, according to a Russian government statement released Thursday.

During a visit by Mishustin to Hanoi in January 2025, Russia said it was "ready to participate in building a national nuclear power industry in Vietnam", and the two nations would work together on joint oil and gas projects, according to a joint statement.

The two sides also signed a deal on nuclear energy at the time, with Chinh saying his country would aim to build a nuclear power plant within five years.

H.Reyes--SFF