The port of Tam Hiep in Nui Thanh district of Quang Nam province.

Under this huge project, Exxonmobil will build a power plant with a capacity of 1,500 MW in phase one, from 4,000 to 5,000 MW in phase two, and a gas processing plant.

The American group is considering two options: taking gas from the blue whale field to Ca Cai, which is close to the Dung Quat oil refinery and building the power plant in Quang Ngai province; or taking gas to the port of Tam Hiep in Nui Thanh district of Quang Nam province and building the power plant in Binh Thanh commune, Binh Son district in the Dung Quat Economic Zone.

Nguyen Hoai Giang, Chairman of the Binh Son Petrochemistry Co., Ltd, which runs the Dung Quat Oil Refinery, says that the government has approved the development plan of the gas industry to 2015 with a vision to 2025.

Under this planning, Vietnam will build a gas pipeline system from Lots 117, 118, 119 to the shore with a design capacity of about 2-4 billion m3 per year.

The government also wants to build a gas processing plant in the area with a capacity of about 4 billion m3 a year, expected to be operational from 2018.

"After a preliminary analysis of the blue whale field, experts believe that Vietnam can take advantage of this gas resource to develop gas power plants and the petrochemical industry," Giang said.

He added that if Exxon Mobil chooses the second option, it can take full use of the existing infrastructure including the deep-sea port, the convenient transportation system, the warehouses and facilities as well as the staff of the Dung Quat oil refinery.

Vietnamnet Bridge