Innovation at the Core: Transforming Petrovietnam into an "Extraordinary" National Energy Industry Corporation

Scientific and Technological

Record Achievements Fueling Growth Momentum

Reflecting on the period from 2020 to the present, it is evident that Petrovietnam has overcome an exceptionally challenging and turbulent phase, arguably one of the most difficult in the corporation's history. From severe market fluctuations such as significant oil price drops to the COVID-19 pandemic, along with internal challenges within the corporation, these factors created considerable inertia that hindered Petrovietnam’s business operations and growth. This was especially pronounced in a global context witnessing epochal shifts driven by foundational technologies.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and leaders of ministries, departments, and Petrovietnam conducting the offshore wind turbine foundation launching and handover ceremony.

Amidst these challenges, the principle of “managing volatility” served as the “guiding star” that helped Petrovietnam find the right path, steering the corporation through turbulent “stormy seas” and enabling it to “rise” and expand into broader horizons.

Petrovietnam has consistently achieved impressive, stable, and high-growth business results in recent periods.

Over the past five years, Petrovietnam has made significant and persistent efforts to implement several foundational initiatives. The first focus was on promoting and completing the development framework for the oil and gas industry, thereby addressing difficulties and bottlenecks to unlock resources and create momentum for growth. Petrovietnam actively contributed to the drafting and enactment of the Petroleum Law and various decrees such as Decree 45 and Decree 132. Particularly notable is Conclusion 76-KL/TW dated April 24, 2024, by the Politburo, regarding the implementation of Resolution 41-NQ/TW dated July 23, 2015. This resolution outlines strategic development directions for Vietnam's oil and gas sector up to 2025, with a vision toward 2035, and provides several orientations for the new phase. These are key institutional, regulatory, and policy “unblockings” for the oil and gas sector, opening new pathways for Petrovietnam’s development.

Petrovietnam successfully implements the “Five Assurances.”

Secondly, the corporation has focused on setting strategic goals and management plans with rigorous targets and comprehensive solutions across the entire Petrovietnam ecosystem.

Thirdly, Petrovietnam has concentrated on building and perfecting a modern, integrated management system with tiered structures, processes, and controls throughout the ecosystem, particularly emphasizing volatility management, dynamic creation, ecosystem management, value chain management, investment portfolio management, and enhancing capacities through the adoption of superior business models.

Fourthly, the corporation has successfully implemented the initiative to rejuvenate and elevate Petrovietnam’s culture based on its vision, mission, and core values through the development of human resources and knowledge in the oil and gas industry.

Thanks to the successful implementation of these foundational solutions, Petrovietnam has continuously achieved impressive, stable, and high-growth business results compared to previous periods.

The outstanding completion of business tasks in 2024 contributed to Petrovietnam's early fulfillment of the 2021-2025 five-year business plan, surpassing targets by 6-32%.

Petrovietnam actively participates in the government-initiated program to eliminate temporary and dilapidated houses.

In particular, the corporation’s total revenue over the four years (2021-2024) exceeded VND 3.5 quadrillion, with an annual growth rate of 16.7%. Total contributions to the state budget reached VND 600 trillion, with an annual growth rate of 21.2%. Petrovietnam's consolidated pre-tax profit also reached an impressive level, exceeding VND 238 trillion over four years, achieving an annual growth rate of 44.3%. Additionally, the corporation completed numerous projects, overcoming longstanding challenges to bring them into operation, thereby generating revenue and cash flow, which in turn resulted in significant investment growth compared to the previous period.

By the end of 2024, Petrovietnam's consolidated assets reached VND 1,066 trillion, with equity amounting to VND 545 trillion. The corporation broke total revenue records for three consecutive years, with 2024 alone surpassing VND 1 trillion in revenue, marking a 6% increase from 2023 and a 36% increase from 2019. These achievements have enabled Petrovietnam to fulfill the “Five Assurances”: ensuring national energy security, economic security, food security, contributing to maritime security and sovereignty, and implementing social welfare. The records set this year will play a crucial role in driving Petrovietnam’s growth momentum.

Petrovietnam Chairman Le Manh Hung visits and supports residents in the Nu Resettlement Village.

Alongside its business operations, Petrovietnam actively engages in social welfare activities.

Petrovietnam's achievements in recent years have earned the trust of the Party, the State, and the people, affirming its status as the most powerful state-owned economic corporation in the country. These results are the collective effort of the entire Petrovietnam team, from leaders and staff to engineers and workers across the corporation.

Conclusion 76 by the Politburo has outlined the direction for Petrovietnam to become the National Energy Industry Corporation. Consequently, the corporation must develop plans and strategies to expand growth opportunities in key sectors, focusing on wind power, hydrogen, ammonia, LNG, and the manufacturing of energy equipment. Additionally, it must strengthen resources, attract talent, enhance competitiveness, and foster deeper integration.

Developing an Outstanding Model for “Double-Digit” Growth

Petrovietnam needs to be "extraordinary" rather than "ordinary" to survive in a complex combination of opportunities and challenges, as well as variable global economic-political fluctuations and increasing competition pressures, particularly with the energy transition trend. According to the adage, “Only those who dare to do extraordinary things will achieve extraordinary success.” As in the past, Petrovietnam must dare to undertake extraordinary endeavors.

Thus, the corporation unanimously agrees on a strategic development direction with the aim of becoming the National Energy Industry Corporation and achieving “double-digit” growth. This is a significant and challenging mission requiring unified efforts across all teams, with aligned goals, strategies, and solutions.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visits and encourages oil and gas workers on-site, affirming Petrovietnam’s achievements.

In 2025, Petrovietnam’s motto will be: “Innovate from the Core – Develop an Outstanding Model – Integrate into the Global Chain – Elevate Energy Knowledge – Breakthrough in Growth – Create a Sustainable Green Transition.” These foundational directions will guide Petrovietnam’s next phase as the National Energy Industry Corporation.

Specifically, the core innovation involves transforming the “DNA” of the corporation. In the future, Petrovietnam is not only transitioning from the National Oil and Gas Corporation but also evolving into the National Energy Industry Corporation, where “industry” plays a pivotal and leading role. This includes developing a management and business model that adapts to market and business environment changes.

Through streamlining and optimizing the apparatus and operating model, Petrovietnam will seize opportunities to transition into new areas, facilitating a sustainable green shift and integrating into the global chain. This is a mandatory trend that Petrovietnam cannot go alone to achieve the goal of sustainable development.

What Does Petrovietnam Need to Do to Innovate from the Core?

Core innovation is a new concept and mindset. Firstly, it involves synchronizing institutional reforms. Petrovietnam must thoroughly complete and implement feasible solutions to ensure the strategic deployment in line with Conclusion 76 of the Politburo, aiming to further improve the development framework of the oil and gas industry.

Innovation from the core is a key requirement in Petrovietnam’s development direction.

In recent years, partial reforms of the institutional and policy framework for the oil and gas sector have been carried out, opening up new opportunities and directions for the industry. However, for continued development, certain major, critical projects require additional investment capital.

In the coming year, urgent steps are needed to synchronize state reforms with Petrovietnam. In speeches and articles on this matter, General Secretary To Lam has emphasized the need for the nation to “rise” to enter a new era. The Central Steering Committee, in summarizing Resolution 18, has been restructuring and streamlining governmental apparatuses, and soon, this will extend to state-owned corporations and enterprises. This presents a significant challenge, requiring Petrovietnam to also adapt by streamlining its structure, improving productivity, efficiency, and operational effectiveness in its business activities.

Next, the management system must be modernized. Petrovietnam’s corporate model is one of the most modern management models in Vietnam, with direct corporate governance functions performed by Petrovietnam representatives and its units, eliminating intermediary levels.

However, moving forward, Petrovietnam needs to focus on strengthening and modernizing its management system, transitioning to a new phase after implementing digital transformation, streamlining, and optimization. The goal is to shift to a model that better adapts to the business environment, capable of dynamic creation within legal and economic contexts to achieve superior and sustainable development. Currently, Petrovietnam is carrying out tasks and solutions to meet the epochal changes of sustainable development and social responsibility. This includes solidifying and perfecting the management system in line with major state reforms, as well as strengthening risk management across the corporation. This will enable the formation of a unified system, while also paying attention to the practical needs and unique characteristics of each unit and sector.

Petrovietnam actively enhances governance, digital transformation, and energy transition efforts.

In addition, we must prepare the workforce for the future. In 2025, the entire Party Committee of the corporation will focus on preparations for Party congresses at all levels, where the development of documents and personnel work will be core issues. To prepare the younger generation for Petrovietnam’s future development, Party committees at all levels must seriously and thoroughly develop and complete personnel plans, ensuring the preparation of a workforce that is idealistic, capable, motivated, and aligned with the tasks and culture of each enterprise, and suited to each stage of the corporation's and each unit’s development.

The principle of “Adding New Momentum – Refreshing Old Momentum” must continue. To enhance competitiveness, Petrovietnam needs to establish mechanisms that promote innovation and research, creating new development drivers and transforming old ones. The goal is to develop Petrovietnam into the National Energy Industry Corporation. Urgent efforts are required to revive weak or challenging projects, bring them back into operation, and build a corporate ecosystem where companies within Petrovietnam support each other’s development. The successful model of PTSC, which has contributed to job creation and supported other businesses within Petrovietnam’s ecosystem, should be expanded and replicated.

For the corporation’s core sectors, Petrovietnam will focus on increasing reserves and production up to 2030, striving to reverse the declining production cycle. New projects will be swiftly launched, with the gas industry identified as the foundation and solution for achieving a green transition and compensating for shortages to maintain production levels. Efforts will be made to develop exploration and extraction of oil and gas, as well as the gas industry, to generate stable cash flow and resources, supporting the ecosystem and leveraging existing oil and gas infrastructure. This will drive growth in oil and gas processing and focus on key areas such as manufacturing, technical services, and energy. Gradually, Petrovietnam will transition to meet market demands, ensuring sustainable development and national energy security.

Science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation need to be accelerated and integrated. A critical aspect is elevating knowledge and culture; specifically, raising the level of Petrovietnam’s culture in harmony with the expertise of the oil and gas sector. The leadership and guidance in building corporate culture must be goal-oriented and continuous. Each leader and representative of the corporation at various units must fully understand and ensure the implementation of solutions to transition investment and business management models, aligning with strategic goals. There should be a unified effort to elevate energy knowledge, innovate from the core, and foster a culture aligned with the aspiration to build the National Energy Industry Corporation under the spirit of “One Team, One Goal.”

Vigorous implementation of the motto “Add New Momentum – Refresh Old Momentum” is actively underway throughout the corporation.

It can be affirmed that the period from 2025 to 2030 will be a phase of sustainable green transition for the corporation, aligning with the spirit, principles, and new goals of the nation’s “Era of Vietnam's Rise.” As a leading economic powerhouse, Petrovietnam – the National Energy Industry Corporation – will focus on breakthroughs in the upcoming period to “accompany” the nation in entering a new era, aiming for prosperity, happiness, and strength for the country.

PVN