On the afternoon of December 20, 2023, the delegation of KPI Board of Directors and Nghi Son Refining and Petrochemical Company LLC. (NSRP) led by Mr. Mohammad R. KH Jasem – Chairman of KPC Holdings Aruba, KPI Board of Directors visited and worked with Thanh Hoa Provincial People’s Committee.

Receiving and working with the delegation, there was Mr. Nguyen Van Thi – Member of the Provincial Party Standing Committee, Standing Vice Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee and representatives of leaders of relevant departments, branches, units and localities. 

Overview of the meeting

On behalf of the KPI delegation, one of the four sponsors of Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical project, Mr. Mohammad R. KH Jasem – Chairman of KPC Holdings Aruba, KPI Board of Directors respectfully thank the warm welcome of the leaders of Thanh Hoa province for the delegation. 

Expressing his impression of the outstanding development of Nghi Son Economic Zone and Thanh Hoa being one of the five leading provinces in the country in terms of economic development, Mr. Mohammad affirmed that the investment and operation of the Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical project today were contributed greatly by the Thanh Hoa provincial authority and relevant sectors. 

Representatives of leaders of Thanh Hoa provincial departments, branches, units and localities at the meeting

Since coming into operation, Nghi Son Refinery has contributed more than 5.5 billion USD to the budget and currently, up to 90% of the refinery‘s employees are Vietnamese. On behalf of the Kuwait Sponsor and the KPI delegation, Mr. Mohammad thanked the leaders of the provincial authorities and people of Thanh Hoa province for always accompanying the development of the Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical project. He looked forward to continuing to receive the province’s attention and support in the future.  

On behalf of the leaders of Thanh Hoa province, Standing Vice Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Van Thi emphasized that Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical Complex was a good symbol in diplomatic and investment relations between the three countries Vietnam – Japan – Kuwait. In particular, Thanh Hoa was honored to be chosen by the Government as the destination for this symbolic cooperative project. 

Members of the KPI Board of Directors

Standing Vice Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee respectfully thanked the Kuwait Sponsor for studying and prioritizing the construction of the Nghi Son refinery in Thanh Hoa. This is a mega energy project that, since coming into operation, has ensured about 35% of petroleum demand for the domestic market with stable quality. After 10 years of constructing the refinery, Thanh Hoa province has also paid attention to investing in more infrastructure projects connecting within the region and with neighboring localities, facilitating the process of investment in construction and operation of the refinery. 

He also emphasized that generations of leaders of Thanh Hoa province in past terms have clearly defined the role, position, and importance of Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical Complex, thereby supporting NSRP in the process of investing and operating the refinery. Although the current refinery operation process has still faced difficulties due to the government institutions, international legal regulations and issues related to trade agreements, petroleum and gas prices, Thanh Hoa provincial authorities believed that NSRP Sponsors would discuss together to develop a plan to overcome such difficulties. 

Both Parties exchanged the souvenirs

Mr. Thi – the Standing Vice Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee hoped that NSRP would continue to restructure the company so that it would achieve higher production and business efficiency. He also requested and hoped that during operations, the Sponsors should pay attention and prioritize the use of input materials in Thanh Hoa and Vietnam; at the same time, train and allocate the Vietnamese and Thanh Hoa employees in high-level positions to improve skills and quality of human resources. 

The KPI Board of Director took photos with Mr. Thi – the Standing Vice Chairman of Thanh Hoa People’s Committee and leaders of provincial departments

Thanh Hoa Province has always considered the Sponsors’ success as the province’s success and committed to always accompany and create favorable conditions, especially in terms of security and order, for the refinery to operate safely and effectively. Simultaneously, the province would continue to upgrade the connecting infrastructure so as for the production, supply, and consumption activities of the refinery to proceed smoothly.  

At the end of the meeting, the parties exchanged souvenirs and took photos together.