Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (R) shakes hands with Leonid Viktorovich Mikhelson, chairman of Russia’s Novatek Group, during their meeting in Moscow, Russia, March 23, 2026. Photo: Nhat Bac
The meeting took place during Chinh’s official visit to Russia from March 22 to 25 at the invitation of his Russian counterpart Mikhail Mishustin.
At the session, Chinh said Novatek’s operations align with Vietnam’s major development goals, including achieving economic growth of 10 percent or more and reaching net-zero emissions by 2050 through key transitions.
He noted that Vietnam’s rapid economic expansion and the growth of emerging industries such as artificial intelligence will require large, stable energy supplies.
Chinh welcomed Novatek’s active engagement with Vietnamese partners and called for close coordination with local authorities, relevant agencies, state-owned energy firms such as Petrovietnam and Vietnam Electricity, and private businesses.
He urged cooperation in implementing LNG projects, including the construction of large-scale storage facilities, and encouraged Vietnamese companies to deepen collaboration with Novatek in LNG technology development.
Highlighting energy cooperation as a bright spot in bilateral ties over the past 50 years, Chinh expressed appreciation for Russian investment and support in Vietnam’s oil and gas sector.
He said energy remains an area where Russia has strength and Vietnam has demand, making it a key pillar of their comprehensive strategic partnership.
Amid a rapidly changing global landscape, the prime minister stressed the need to strengthen ties with traditional partners while diversifying supply sources, markets, and supply chains.
Chinh added that Vietnam is reviewing legal frameworks related to the power sector and welcomed Novatek’s participation in developing LNG port infrastructure and LNG-fired power plant projects in Hai Phong City and the provinces of Quang Ninh, Thanh Hoa, Khanh Hoa, and An Giang.
He stressed the need to ensure a stable LNG supply for the Vietnamese market while effectively addressing existing bottlenecks.
For his part, Mikhelson described Vietnam as one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, with strong demand for energy development.
He said Novatek hopes to continue receiving support from Vietnamese authorities in its plans to expand investment and cooperation in Vietnam, building on the comprehensive strategic partnership and long-standing ties between the two countries.
Mikhelson added that the group has successfully implemented large-scale LNG projects while developing proprietary natural gas liquefaction technology globally.
He said Novatek is particularly interested in Vietnam’s LNG sector, including possible involvement in the Ca Na project in south-central Khanh Hoa Province with partners such as Zarubezhneft, while also exploring opportunities in the country’s growing gas market.
Mikhelson confirmed that Novatek would actively work with Vietnamese partners to advance the projects and cooperation initiatives proposed by the prime minister.
Founded in August 1994, Novatek specializes in the exploration, production, processing, and marketing of natural gas and liquid hydrocarbons.
It is Russia’s second-largest natural gas producer after Gazprom and one of the world’s leading publicly traded gas companies by output.
In the 2020 Forbes Global 2000 list, Novatek ranked 316th among the world’s largest publicly traded companies.
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