Petrolimex to sell 8 pct stake to Japanese JX Nippon & Energy

Petrolimex hopes to finalize the transaction, worth at least VND3.934 trillion ($174 million), this year. Part of the funding from the sales will be used to finance its trading unit in Singapore, which is incurring losses.

The two companies have negotiated the share sales for the last two years. Petrolimex had initially wanted to sell 20 percent stake to the Japanese company but it has finally lowered to 8 percent, Bao said.

The Vietnamese government, through the Ministry of Industry and Trade, currently owns about 95 percent stake in Petrolimex, with the rest held by the public and company's laborer unions.

JX Nippon & Energy signed a memorandum of understanding in December 2014 to become Petrolimex’s strategic partner. The two companies plan to set up a joint venture to jointly invest in the proposed Nam Van Phong refinery in the central province of Khanh Hoa.