Vietsovpetro reaches historic milestone of 255mn tonnes of crude oil at Vietnam’s Bach Ho field

The milestone was achieved at 3:30 am on Thursday, nearly 40 years after the joint venture first drilled for crude oil from the Bach Ho field, Vietnam’s largest oil field on its continental shelf in the East Vietnam Sea, on June 26, 1986.

Throughout its development, Vietsovpetro has maintained stable production while achieving notable scientific and technological breakthroughs, including the discovery and production of oil from basement rock reservoirs at the Bach Ho field, a landmark achievement with both practical and scientific value for the petroleum industry.

The milestone is also expected to provide strong momentum for Vietsovpetro to further accelerate scientific and technological innovation, adopt advanced technical solutions, and improve production and business efficiency, thereby maintaining its role as a key player in Vietnam’s national industry and energy sector.

In its early years, the joint venture faced significant challenges in infrastructure, technology, and offshore production experience.

Over time, successive generations of Vietnamese and Russian engineers and workers have gradually overcome these obstacles and successfully built and expanded oil and gas activities on Vietnam’s southern continental shelf.

In the first quarter of 2026 alone, Vietsovpetro produced around 770,000 metric tons of crude oil and condensate, along with more than 10 million cubic meters of natural gas, and delivered over 210 million cubic meters of gas to shore to meet domestic energy demand.

The company said crude oil output remained largely in line with targets, while gas production and gas deliveries to shore exceeded planned levels.

To sustain production as long-producing fields enter a natural decline phase, Vietsovpetro has implemented a range of technical solutions at Block 09-1, where the Bach Ho field is located, including optimizing well flow, enhancing extraction efficiency, and maximizing recovery of remaining reserves.

At the same time, exploration and appraisal drilling activities have been stepped up to add new reserves, laying the groundwork for future production, while enhanced oil recovery (EOR) technologies are also being deployed as the joint venture transitions toward a more technology-driven production model, with support from units within the Petrovietnam ecosystem.

Thanks to these efforts, crude oil sales in the first quarter of 2026 exceeded targets, contributing to state budget revenues and reinforcing national energy security.