Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Bo Linh: The process of accumulating science and technology is the "greatest resource" of Petrovietnam

Celebrating the 63rd Anniversary of Vietnam Oil and Gas Industry Tradition Day (November 27, 1961 - November 27, 2024)

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Bo Linh: The process of accumulating science and technology is the "greatest resource" of Petrovietnam

Petrovietnam's scientific and technological maturity can be seen most clearly through the exploration and exploitation process in complex terrains.

Oil and gas is one of the earliest industries to apply science and technology in Vietnam. The first step from the early years of the industry's establishment was to send oil and gas staff to countries developed in this field (Russia, France, Hungary, Romania, etc.) to study and absorb seismic recording techniques back home, then apply them to search for structures with the most accurate exploitation prospects.

From the early application of science and technology, Vietnam's oil and gas exploitation techniques have undergone a process of accumulation, integration with the world's advanced technology and sought to rise up and go ahead. Up to now, the Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (Petrovietnam) has inherited and developed many achievements in oil and gas science and technology, and has been awarded by the Party and the State with noble awards, the Ho Chi Minh Prize, the State Prize for Science and Technology for projects, research clusters and collectives and individuals with great achievements and contributions to the industry's activities.

Recognizing that science and technology is one of the important solutions for Petrovietnam to successfully implement the Group's development strategy in recent times, Associate Professor, Dr. Le Bo Linh, former Deputy Secretary General of the National Assembly, former Deputy Chairman of the National Assembly's Committee on Science , Technology and Environment, had discussions with reporters about this content.

PV: How do you evaluate the process of accumulating science and technology of Petrovietnam since its establishment to fulfill its role of contributing to the country's energy industry?

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Bo Linh : Oil and gas is a key economic sector identified by the State early on, through the formation of a scientific and technical research team. The Vietnamese oil and gas industry soon adopted advanced science and technology from the Soviet Union (Russia) and other oil and gas developed countries to develop a new field at that time.

The Party and the State have a vision and policy to develop a team of dedicated staff, which is the premise for the oil and gas industry to develop commensurate with Vietnam's potential. This is proven by the industry's contribution to the country's growth over a long period of time, peaking at 25-30% of the country's total budget revenue.

In addition, scientific and technological achievements have also helped Petrovietnam fulfill its role in ensuring energy security, building the first oil and gas refinery complex in Dung Quat. This is a step forward for Vietnam's oil and gas from crude exploitation to processing, developing many related industries: plastics, fertilizers, etc.

Not only is it an important and key economic and technical sector, oil and gas also performs the multi-function of developing the marine economy associated with ensuring national security and defense, thereby affirming its solid position in the national economy.

Due to its specificity, the requirements for the application of science and technology in the oil and gas industry are very high, unlike other industries. Each stage (exploration, exploitation, reserve, processing, consumption, export creates a multi-industry complex); each field (geology, biochemistry, mechanics) requires science and technology, even the most advanced applications to meet the development requirements of the industry. Vietnam Oil and Gas has made efforts to grasp new science and technology trends in the world as well as to research its own achievements that are suitable for itself.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Bo Linh: Petrovietnam needs to promote existing resources and turn science and technology into a driving force for development to meet the new requirements of the times.

Investment in science and technology of the industry is always focused on a large scale, typically the Vietnam Petroleum Institute. Not every economic group has its own research institute, this demonstrates the vision and worthy investment of Petrovietnam for the industry.

Petrovietnam's scientific and technological maturity can be seen most clearly through the process of exploration and exploitation in complex terrains, great depths, and dangers, and the shift from crude exploitation to processing along with the development of diverse products.

I had the opportunity to visit the Petrovietnam oil and gas achievements exhibition room and saw that it clearly shows the applications of science and technology as well as the noble awards such as the Ho Chi Minh Prize and the State Prize for Science and Technology that Petrovietnam has achieved. I highly appreciate the current direction and results of the Group.

The process of accumulating science and technology has created a large source of capital for Petrovietnam in terms of intellectual potential. Science and technology have solved the problems posed to the industry. Of course, compared to the development of the country and the current rapid pace of development of the world, Petrovietnam needs to catch up, catch up quickly and surpass to seize opportunities and solve new challenges.

This change requires both management and adaptation of science and technology, digital transformation, and green transformation. New requirements require the science and technology thinking of the oil and gas industry to be more innovative, with new steps, because the previous methods may have brought results but are now limited.

PV: In the context of increasingly scarce natural resources and the need for economic development associated with environmental protection being promoted, in your opinion, what major directions should Petrovietnam focus on in researching and developing science and technology?

Oil and gas reserves are limited, the potential for exploration and exploitation is increasingly challenging, posing new requirements for Petrovietnam, especially in the processing stage to increase added value, respond to fluctuations directly related to oil and gas resources such as climate change, rising sea levels and the need for environmental protection.

These requirements require a new vision to bring the oil and gas industry to a revolution. The period of abundant and easy-to-exploit resources is passing, Vietnam as well as other countries in the world are facing the context of energy transition, the oil and gas industry needs to reform itself, proactively participate in this transition process. This means that Petrovietnam is facing new tasks in research and application of science and technology, needing to inherit existing achievements and innovate new elements.

Putting science and technology development in line with strategy in the industry reform revolution to address new challenges

Science and technology have been an important factor since the early days of the industry's formation. In the coming time, Petrovietnam needs to develop science and technology in conjunction with strategy, placed in the industry's reform revolution, considering this the main method to complete this reform.

In particular, the oil and gas industry needs to promote existing resources and turn science and technology into a driving force for development. In terms of thinking, first, science and technology policies need to be associated with restructuring and transforming the industry to participate in new fields, not only in available natural resources but also in new and renewable energies.

Second, focus on new areas of technology mastery. For any industry to be competitive not only domestically but also internationally, it is necessary to focus on cutting-edge and foundational technologies to avoid falling behind, catch up and surpass. Currently, the world is in the 4.0 technology revolution with automation, artificial intelligence, etc., the Vietnamese oil and gas industry also needs to adapt and apply human scientific achievements to production and business.

Besides fully applying what the world has, Petrovietnam needs to create basic technologies for the industry. The world has only a few dozen countries that possess oil and gas resources. If Vietnam can master the technology, it will reduce dependence, take the initiative in international cooperation, reduce rough processing, and increase value.

This is a big challenge but Petrovietnam must be determined to do it through investing appropriate resources in science and technology. The good news is that the Group has allocated financial resources for the Science and Technology Fund, Petrovietnam's revenue is very large, the State always encourages the Group to invest appropriately in science and technology, even larger than the average rate of other fields.

PV: Petrovietnam identifies that "Natural resources are limited, scientific, technological and knowledge resources are unlimited for the Group". What is your assessment of this viewpoint?

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Bo Linh : Petrovietnam's viewpoint is part of Vietnam's consistent policy in the process of economic restructuring. We have passed the stage of extensive development based on natural resources and cheap labor, and are moving to the stage of intensive development. For industries such as oil and gas, this requirement is even more urgent, because this is an industry that inherently requires reliance on science and technology.

Therefore, investment in knowledge resources, science and technology is decisive and vital to the competitiveness of the industry. The Group's viewpoint is completely correct and needs to be realized in the Group's development strategy.

That viewpoint needs to be concretized through identifying key priority areas, linking science and technology with the industry development strategy in the coming time, allocating adequate investment resources and training a team to meet new requirements. The young staff will absorb the latest technological achievements of the world and promote innovation in the stages and fields of the industry, especially with renewable energy - we still lack experience, resources, management and technology.

With strategic vision, I believe that Petrovietnam will fulfill its pioneering role as a key economic group in Vietnam's energy sector.

Phuong Thao

Source: https://www.pvn.vn/chuyen-muc/tap-doan/tin/cef0fe23-ef8d-4f85-b4c7-d2fdec14ef59