Vietnam's Petroleum Sector : Technical Assistance for the Revision of the Existing Legal and Regulatory Framework

The oil and gas potential of Vietnam's continental shelf remains relatively unexplored compared with that of its neighbors, including China, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. A number of factors affect the decision to undertake petroleum investments: geology, geography, geopolitics, and investment climate. Host governments cannot control the first three factors. However, they do control the investment climate, and the legal and contractual framework and the petroleum fiscal system are key factors to be considered in the competition among governments for access to investment capital. Despite intense efforts to attract international oil companies to explore the country's sedimentary basins, including incentive terms contained in a 1998 decision of the prime minister, drilling activity has remained modest in recent years. The government requested technical assistance from ESMAP for revision of its petroleum legal regime so that it might become a modern legal and regulatory framework for the petroleum sector and attract foreign investment to develop its hydrocarbon reserves. The project team evaluated and identified international best practice in the areas of petroleum regimes to develop its recommendations to Vietnam. They recommended strengthening of the legal, regulatory, and contractual framework based on three cornerstones: the Petroleum Law, the Regulations (or, as they are called in Vietnam, the Decrees), and a Model Contract based on production-sharing agreements. Recommendations were provided to the government of Vietnam in a series of meetings, workshops, and reports.

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: World Bank
Format: ESMAP Paper biblioteca
Language:English
en_US
Published: Washington, DC 2003-12
Subjects:AUTHORITY, BARRELS OF OIL, BARRELS PER DAY, COMPETITIVE BIDDING, COMPETITIVE BIDDING PROCESS, CRUDE OIL, CRUDE OIL EXPORTS, CRUDE OIL RESERVES, DECREE, DECREES, DOMESTIC ENERGY, DOWNSTREAM GAS, DOWNSTREAM GAS SECTOR, DRILLING, ECONOMIC CONDITIONS, ELECTRICITY, EXCESS CAPACITY, FISCAL, FISCAL INCENTIVES, FOREIGN EXCHANGE, FOREIGN INVESTMENT, FOREIGN INVESTORS, FUTURE ENERGY DEMAND, GAS DEPARTMENT, GAS DISTRIBUTION, GAS EXPLORATION, GAS INDUSTRY, GAS MARKET, GAS MARKETING, GAS PIPELINES, GAS PRICING, GAS PRICING POLICY, GAS PRODUCTION, GAS RESERVES, GAS RESOURCES, GAS SUPPLIES, GAS TRANSMISSION, GAS UTILIZATION, GOVERNMENT AGENCY, GOVERNMENT POLICY, HIGH OIL PRICES, HYDROCARBONS, INCOME, INVESTMENT CAPITAL, INVESTMENT CLIMATE, LAND USE, LEGAL FRAMEWORK, LEGAL SYSTEM, LEGISLATION, LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK, LEGISLATIVE PROVISIONS, LEGISLATURE, LOW OIL PRICES, MINISTRY OF FINANCE, NATIONAL OIL, NATURAL GAS, NATURAL GAS DEVELOPMENT, NATURAL GAS PRODUCTION, NATURAL GAS RESERVES, OIL, OIL AND GAS, OIL AND GAS SECTOR, OIL COMPANIES, OIL COMPANY, OIL EXPORTS, OIL FIELDS, OIL PRICES, OIL PRODUCTION, PETROLEUM, PETROLEUM CONTRACTS, PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT, PETROLEUM EXPLORATION, PETROLEUM INDUSTRY, PETROLEUM LAW, PETROLEUM PRICES, PETROLEUM RESOURCES, PETROLEUM SECTOR, PIPELINE, POTENTIAL INVESTORS, POWER GENERATION, POWER PLANTS, PRODUCERS, REGULATORY FRAMEWORK, REGULATORY REGIME, REGULATORY REGIMES, ROYALTY, SOCIAL PROTECTION, STATE PROPERTY, TAX LAW, TAX RATE, TAXATION,
Online Access:http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2003/12/3032246/vietnam-petroleum-sector-technical-assistance-revision-existing-legal-regulatory-framework
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/20273
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Summary:The oil and gas potential of Vietnam's continental shelf remains relatively unexplored compared with that of its neighbors, including China, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. A number of factors affect the decision to undertake petroleum investments: geology, geography, geopolitics, and investment climate. Host governments cannot control the first three factors. However, they do control the investment climate, and the legal and contractual framework and the petroleum fiscal system are key factors to be considered in the competition among governments for access to investment capital. Despite intense efforts to attract international oil companies to explore the country's sedimentary basins, including incentive terms contained in a 1998 decision of the prime minister, drilling activity has remained modest in recent years. The government requested technical assistance from ESMAP for revision of its petroleum legal regime so that it might become a modern legal and regulatory framework for the petroleum sector and attract foreign investment to develop its hydrocarbon reserves. The project team evaluated and identified international best practice in the areas of petroleum regimes to develop its recommendations to Vietnam. They recommended strengthening of the legal, regulatory, and contractual framework based on three cornerstones: the Petroleum Law, the Regulations (or, as they are called in Vietnam, the Decrees), and a Model Contract based on production-sharing agreements. Recommendations were provided to the government of Vietnam in a series of meetings, workshops, and reports.