Vietnam’s state-run Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical Co (BSR) has inked an agreement with Azerbaijani state energy company State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) to buy five million barrels of crude in 2020.

The signing ceremony on November 30. Photo: BSR

SOCAR Trading will provide five million barrels of Azeri Light crude to BSR’s Dung Quat refinery for the first half of 2020, BSR said on its website.

Binh Son Oil Refinery Director Bui Minh Tien. Photo: BSR

BSR Director Bui Minh Tien said at the signing ceremony on November 30 that BSR and SOCAR Trading would possibly be long-term partners thanks to high quality of Azeri crude and flexible trading conditions.

Hayal Ahmadzada, SOCAR Trading’s vice president business development. Photo: BSR

Hayal Ahmadzada, SOCAR Trading’s vice president business development, said the deal would open up long-term partnership which began 10 years ago.

BSR said that Azeri crude would become one of its strategic crude oil products from 2020 largely thanks to Vietnam’s abolishment of the import tax on crude oil which took effect from November.

So far, BSR has completed tender offer of total 11.6 million barrels for the first half 2020, the remaining volume would come from domestic sources, mainly Bach Ho oil field.

Earlier this week, BSR said it would import 8-10 million barrels of West Texas Intermediate and Bonny Light crude oil in 2020 for its Dung Quat refinery.

SOCAR Trading, with headquarters in Geneva, was incorporated in December 2007 as the marketing arm of SOCAR with a mandate to market Azerbaijani barrels produced from the Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli field and other surrounding fields in Azerbaijan.

Vietnam has been importing more crude to serve its energy transition which switches to gas.

The country’s crude oil imports during the first 11 months of this year rose 66% from a year earlier to 7.44 million tones (54.54 million barrels), Reuters cited the government data.