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Vietnam is reportedly seeking Saudi support in building two oil refineries. (AFP)
Saudi Arabia is considering investing in refineries in Vietnam. Saudi Arabia and Vietnam signed agreements that will pave the way for increased co-operation in the oil and gas sectors, including possible Saudi investment in Vietnamese refineries.
On the first day of Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet's state visit to the Saudi capital, Saudi Oil Minister Ali Naimi and Vietnam's Trade and Industry Minister Vu Huy Hoang signed protocols on co-operation in hydrocarbon and minerals development at the palace of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia, the SPA said.
Vietnam is reported to be seeking Saudi support in building two oil refineries, and top Vietnamese energy officials were accompanying Triet on his two-day trip to Saudi Arabia, a major supplier of oil to the Southeast Asian country.
They were holding meetings with the Saudi oil ministry and powerful state oil firm Aramco.
The two sides also signed a bilateral taxation treaty and a pact on agricultural investment and trade co-operation at King Abdullah's palace, SPA said.
Vietnam is a key exporter of rice, fruits and vegetables, and farmed seafood to Saudi Arabia, and Riyadh is actively seeking investments in farm production assets abroad to increase its food security.
Earlier in the day Triet encouraged Saudi businessmen to invest in Vietnam at a meeting with the Saudi Council of Chambers of Commerce, and pledged to build bilateral trade, which stood at $296 million (Dh1 billion) last year, according to SPA news agency.
Triet told the businessmen that he "will work to implement all the proposals made during the meeting immediately", responding to their calls for easier visas and investment regulations, SPA news agency said.
Riyadh and Hanoi are also discussing increasing the 7,000 Vietnamese workers currently in Saudi Arabia, whose economy is heavily dependent on a nine to 10 million-strong expatriate workforce mainly from South Asia, Indonesia and the Philippines.
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