Hai Phong Party chief works with Russia’s Novatek Group
Secretary of the Hai Phong Party Committee Le Ngoc Chau has asked Novatek to study cooperation in developing LNG infrastructure to meet energy demand in Hai Phong and the northern region of Vietnam.
A Hai Phong delegation led by Le Ngoc Chau, Member of the Party Central Committee, Secretary of the Hai Phong Party Committee and Head of the Hai Phong National Assembly Delegation, held a working session with Novatek Group on September 8 afternoon (Moscow time) as part of a working trip to Russia and France.
The delegation was received and hosted by Elena Golm, Director of Business Development at Novatek, and the group's leaders and experts.
Novatek is the second-largest natural gas producer and the largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) producer in Russia. It is among the world's leading enterprises in terms of natural gas output, with several large-scale LNG projects such as Yamal LNG and Arctic LNG 2, as well as proprietary natural gas liquefaction technology.
Introducing Hai Phong to the Russian side, Secretary of the City Party Committee Le Ngoc Chau affirmed that Hai Phong is currently a leading industrial, manufacturing and export center in northern Vietnam, with 50 industrial parks covering nearly 14,000 ha and three economic zones covering 47,540 ha. The city is also home to many major technology and manufacturing groups such as LG, SK and Pegatron, along with hundreds of FDI enterprises, with total foreign investment reaching nearly USD 50 billion.
Hai Phong has planned LNG-fired power plants with a total capacity of up to 4,800 MW and LNG storage facilities with a capacity of 4 - 6 million tons per year. Six berths in the city’s deep-water port system have been put into operation at Lach Huyen Port, and six others are under development. Together with the port system planned at Nam Do Son, the ports can accommodate vessels of up to 200,000 DWT, creating favorable conditions for developing gas-fired power plants, LNG storage and port facilities, and LNG distribution centers serving the northern region.
In particular, since October 13, 2025, Hai Phong has operated the first Free Trade Zone in northern Vietnam under the National Assembly’s Resolution No. 226/2025/QH15, with outstanding preferential mechanisms on corporate income tax, import tax exemptions for equipment, land-rent exemptions and 24/7 electronic customs.
Based on these potential advantages, Secretary Le Ngoc Chau proposed that Novatek pay attention to and study three areas of cooperation: conducting a feasibility study on investing in LNG reception and transshipment facilities associated with the deep-water ports in Hai Phong to meet energy demand in the northern region; studying participation in the development of LNG-fired power projects to directly serve the production needs of industrial parks and FDI enterprises in Hai Phong and neighboring localities; and taking advantage of the preferential mechanisms of the Hai Phong Free Trade Zone to implement investment items related to energy and logistics infrastructure.
The Secretary of the Hai Phong Party Committee affirmed that the city would provide maximum support to Novatek throughout the entire process, from surveying and research to implementation of investment procedures, construction and project operation, ensuring investment progress and efficiency.
The representative of Novatek highly appreciated the city's gracious reception, expressed an impression of Hai Phong's pace of industrial development and its investment incentives, and affirmed that the group would continue to study and engage in more in-depth technical discussions on the cooperation areas raised by the two sides.
Hai Phong News