According to the Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (Petrovietnam), along with the agreement, the protocol amending the inter-governmental agreement dated December 27, 2010 on continued cooperation in geological survey and oil and gas exploitation in Vietnam’s continental shelf by Vietsovpetro, which was signed on April 20, 2016, also began taking effect. 

Established on June 19, 1981, Vietsovpetro is one of the leading firms in exploiting oil and gas on Vietnam’s continental shelf. It has so far exploited 220 million tonnes of crude oil, raking in over US$74 billion. 

As of December 31, 2015, Rusvietpetro, which was formed on December 15, 2009, pumped over 13 million tonnes of crude oil, earning more than US$5 billion. Both Rusvietpetro and Vietsovpetro are joint ventures between Petrovietnam and the Zarubezhneft Company of Russia.

They are considered as a symbol of the traditional and strategic ties between Vietnam and Russia.

The signing and ratification of the two documents reflects strong support of the two countries’ Governments for Petrovietnam and Zarubezhneft, and for links between the two nations in energy and oil and gas development, thus helping the joint ventures effectuate their operations.