| Abstract | Currently, Vietnam gas industry has been mainly developed in the South of Vietnam with activities of gas exploitation and transportation from the gas fields of Cuu Long, Nam Con Son and Malay-Thochu basin to onshore, supplying around nine (09) billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas per annum. Three current gas consumers are gas turbine power plants (accounting for around 89% total consumption), fertilizer plants (6%) and manufacturing industries (5%).
Based on the positive discovered gas reserves in the offshore of Vietnam Central, the Vietnam’s gas master plan approved by Prime Minister in degree 459/QĐ-TTg 30/03/2011 has defined development plan of gas supply to the Central of Vietnam as follows:
To develop Bao Vang field of Block 113 with the first gas in 2016 and flow rate of 1 bcm per year, and bring Bao Den field into production in 2018 with flow rate of about 0.8 bcm per year. The total recoverable gas reserves of these two fields is around 30 bcm. In parallel with offshore development, a 120 km long and 18 inch diameter gas pipeline to be built to transport gas from these two fields to Quang Tri province.
Ca Voi Xanh (Green Shale) and Ca Heo (Dolphin) fields will be on stream in 2018 with supply of around 12.4 million cubic meters per day. 80km of a 20 inch gas pipeline shall be built to transport processed gas from such two fields to either Quang Nam or Quang Ngai.
As you may know, it is extremely complicated and costly to develop an offshore gas reserves. Therefore a great and stable onshore consumption demand is needed to ensure the economic effectiveness of the project. Normally, investors need accurate and reliable data or a confirmation of gas consuming market before making decisions. However, there is not any gas market research has been done for the Central of Vietnam.
Realizing the need of a gas market research for the Central, with almost 10-year experience in gas industry, supported with abundant data sources and relationship, the author has decided to make independently the research focusing on the provinces which are in the correlative positions with discovered offshore gas resources of Vietnam Central.
The research approach is based on industrial development plans, fuel demand of each province and also analysis of the price competitiveness of natural gas over other fuel types in each industry so as to evaluate the possibility to penetrate the energy market of natural gas. The details of the research is demonstrated by reviewing national development plans of Gas, Power, Coal and Chemical industries of Vietnam a long with those of each researched province in order to define the direction, detailed development scheme (capacity, location, etc.) of industries. In addition, the previous
iv
research carried out by Petrovietnam Gas Distribution Company on possibility utilizing gas of existing manufacturing industries in Vietnam and practical experiences in developing gas market in the South of Vietnam are important reference to define manufacturing industries which are able to use natural gas, as substitution, and their fuel demand per unit of product.
Detailed results of the research on gas demand alternatives in relation with the price competitiveness of gas and the detailed development plans (production scale, location of factories, start-up schedule…) of potential gas consumers are helpful to PetroVietnam in making development plan of gas industry in Central Vietnam and also to investors in considering investment possibility. As for the author, the research is useful for the present work at Gas Division of PetroVietnam, i.e. management on gas projects in the Central. |