The National Oil and Gas Group (PVN) announced that it has completed its annual production target for this year.

The group said its total output from the exploitation of oil fields at home and abroad reached 16.21 million tonnes of crude oil and 9.5 billion cu.m of gas by December 9.

These accomplishments indicate that PVN achieved its annual targets 22 days before the end of this year.

By the year-end, PVN expected to add 1 million tonnes of crude oil and 500 million cu.m of gas to its total output from exploitation in these oil fields.

The group also completed its plan to seek and explore new oil fields with a total estimated output of 48 million tonnes of crude oil.

According to the General Statistics Office, Vietnam gained a year-on-year increase of 3.2 percent in the export value of crude oil, reaching 6.86 billion USD, as well as an increase in the import value of petrol by 13.9 percent, attaining 7.2 billion USD, against the same period last year.

The finance ministry last week increased the maximum preferential import duty on oil and petrol by 10 to 15 percent to touch 40 percent due to a sharp drop in oil prices in the global market. Vietnam is a crude oil exporter that recorded an export volume of 1.3 million tonnes last year.

The oil price in the global market has dropped sharply from 105 USD per barrel in late July to 68.53 USD late last month, the lowest in the past four to five years.-VNA