Vietnam has issued 37 investment licenses for oil and gas exploration since industry development began in 1998. About 30 companies, many of which are American or European, now operate in offshore Vietnam. However, many foreign companies have withdrawn from their contracts. Reasons include problems with the Vietnamese regulatory framework and disappointment at recovering smaller quantities of oil and gas than anticipated. The most active foreign company in Vietnam is Zarubezneft, a Russian oil company which has a joint venture with PetroVietnam, called Vietsovpetro.
Plans are underway to construct the country's first refinery.
The refinery will be part of a larger petrochemical center in the Quang Ngai province. Ground has been broken, but construction on the refinery will not be completed for several years. French, Korean, and Malaysian companies were interested in becoming involved in the project, but the firms could not agree with PetroVietnam to a deal that would be financially feasible. Vietnam is considering a Thai proposal that Vietnamese crude oil be shipped to Thailand for refining, rather than to the more distant Singapore. After major gas discoveries in 1996, production has moved more slowly than expected.