ExxonMobil has started surveying sites for its Ca Voi Xanh (Blue Whale) project in the coastal Tam Xuan commune of Nui Thanh district in Quang Nam Province later this year.

An ExxonMobil source said it will dedicate the project during the 2017 Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) Summit in Da Nang this November, with the participation of the US President.

In a meeting with ExxonMobil representatives on Thursday, chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Dinh Van Thu said the province had handed over 200 hectares of completed land-clearance for ExxonMobil to begin their project later this year. Thu said the province has allocated resettlement projects for local residents, providing land for the project to start smoothly.

The investment project was initiated several years ago, when Exxon Mobil discovered offshore gas reserves in central Viet Nam. Last year, affiliates of State oil and gas giant PetroVietnam (PVN) and ExxonMobil signed a US$10 billion framework agreement to build a power plant using natural gas extracted from the Blue Whale field off the coast of Quang Nam Province.

As climate change continues to endanger the country and the planet, the gas giant plans to have its project operational by 2023. — VNS