Vietsovpetro Marks 20th Jubilee

The Vietsovpetro Russian-Vietnamese joint venture for oil prospecting and extracting on the continental shelf of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam has been presented with a highest award of Vietnam, Hero of Labour title, on the occasion of its 20th jubilee. The remarkable date coincided with the extraction of the 100-millionth tonne of "black gold" by Vietsovpetro. Deputy Prime Minister of Vietnam Pham Gia Khiem will come to the festivities in Vungtau where the main base of Vietsovpetro is situated. Russia is represented by a delegation headed by deputy head of the Russian president's administration Viktor Ivanov, Russia's ambassador to Vietnam Andrei Tatarinov, and veterans of the enterprise. The joint venture starts operating in November 1981 in compliance with the intergovernmental agreement between Vietnam and the USSR. The first industrial oil was produced in 1986. The deposits being assimilated also produce casing-head gas in great volumes. Over the past decade Vietsovpetro incomes amounted to USD 12 billion.