An Oil refinery in which a Kuwait company holds stake has commenced operations in Vietnam. The 200,000 barrels-per-day Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical Complex is Vietnam’s first refinery to feature foreign investors.

The project’s stakeholders include Kuwait Petroleum International (KPI) and Idemitsu, both of which hold 35.1 per cent stake in the scheme, in addition to PetroVietnam and Mitsui Chemicals. The four firms contributed $4 billion to the scheme’s total $9 billion investment capital.

Construction work on the project started in 2013, and the project is Vietnam’s second refinery, Kuwait’s state-news agency, Kuna, reported.

In a press statement, Tokyo-based Idemitsu said: "Intended to secure stable domestic supplies of petroleum products in Vietnam, the refinery is a highly efficient facility that has the capacity to [...] maximise the production of high-value-added petroleum products through use of sophisticated cracking facilities.

"Its petroleum products will provide a stable supply to meet Vietnam’s booming demand for energy, and its petrochemical products will be sold throughout Asia."

KPI, one of Kuwait’s largest public-sector employers, has steadily progressed with development schemes in the Gulf state this year. In September, it was revealed that Akzonobel would supply its products for the $14 billion (KWD4.2 billion) Al Zour refinery, which will produce low sulphur fuel oil to replace a higher gradient currently used in local power plants.

The Kuwaiti company is also expanding its international operations, and in March 2018, announced it would build a network of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in Belgium for Ionity.