A view of the PetroVietnam Ca Mau Fertiliser Company Limited (PVCFC). — Photo VNA

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Science and technology are key solutions for the success of the mineral sector, so enterprises should make additional investments in new technologies to ensure more effective exploitation, safety and environment protection.

Cao Quoc Hung, deputy minister of Industry and Trade, made the statement while attending the conference held in Ha Noi yesterday to review the project to renew and modernise technologies in the mineral sector in 2015, with a vision to 2025. He noted that mineral firms should have specific evaluations of their abilities to take measures to improve science and technologies for the period of 2016-20.

Nguyen Huy Hoan, deputy director of the ministry's Department of Science and Technology, said after six years of the project's implementation, several large State-owned groups and corporations had seen significant improvements in modernising their technologies.

"Most of the technologies in petroleum exploitation and processing have reached the regional level, which ensures safety in labour and the environment. The technologies have focused on high automatic levels, as well as processing, to create high added value," Hoan said.

For example, the Viet Nam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) had been using the most modern technologies in chemical, biological and informatics to improve oil recovery at Black Lion, White Tiger while gradually completing technologies in oil exploitation.

The group also built key oil refineries, such as Dung Quat, Phu My Fertiliser and Ca Mau Fertiliser, using the most modern technologies in the world.

The National Coal and Minerals Holding Group (Vinacomin) also approved and implemented 10 key science and technology programmes to modernize their technology. It built mines with high capacity and modern facilities, including Ha Lam, Nui Beo and Khe Cham.

The Viet Nam Chemical Group (Vinachem) invested in several new projects using modern technologies, such as DAP Lao Cai and Lao Salt Mine. It also supplemented new technologies which consume less energy.

However, he said several businesses in coal and minerals still had outdated technologies with high production costs and wasted natural resources, as the capital demand for modernising technology remained too high.

He urged firms in the sector to make more investments in research and renew technologies. — VNS