The Ministry of Finance issued Official Dispatch No. 13834/BTC-TCDT to the Government Office reporting on petroleum reserves, including a series of hot proposals related to delegating management of petroleum reserves and converting types. diesel in reserve.
Regarding the proposal of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, it is proposed that the Government transfer the task of managing national petroleum reserves from the Ministry of Industry and Trade to the Ministry of Finance in the period 2024-2025.
Carefully consider the legal basis, advantages and disadvantages of assigning the Ministry of Finance to “manage” petroleum reserves
The Ministry of Finance said that according to the provisions of Article 8, Article 21 of the National Reserve Law, Clause 1, Article 7 of Decree No. 94/2013/ND-CP dated August 21, 2013 of the Government detailing the implementation National Reserve Law and Article 1 of Decree No. 128/2015/ND-CP dated December 15, 2015 amending and supplementing Decree No. 94/2013/ND-CP dated August 21, 2013 of the Government; The Ministry of Industry and Trade is assigned by the Government to manage petroleum products, while the Ministry of Finance is responsible for state management of national reserves.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade proposes to transfer the management of petroleum reserves to the national reserve managed by the Ministry of Finance – Photo: (Ministry of Industry and Trade)
Furthermore, petroleum is a special commodity that is flammable, explosive, toxic and is a conditional business sector; Storage, transportation, trading, import and export must comply with strict technical standards; Petroleum storage tanks, pipeline systems and transportation vehicles must be specialized and specific types.
Therefore, the national petroleum reserve management agency must be a competent, specialized and professional agency; has the function of state management of industries and fields.
Based on assigned functions, tasks, and powers, the Ministry of Industry and Trade is the agency assigned by the Government to perform the function of state management of industry and commerce, including the following industries and fields: electricity, coal, oil and gas, energy… (according to Decree No. 96/2022/ND-CP dated November 29, 2022 of the Government).
Therefore, the Government’s assignment to the Ministry of Industry and Trade to manage national petroleum reserves is in accordance with the functions, tasks and the capacity and actual conditions of the Ministry’s management organization. Industry and Trade.
In case the Ministry of Industry and Trade proposes to amend the regulations in Decree No. 94/2013/ND-CP dated August 21, 2013 of the Government to transfer national petroleum reserves from the Ministry of Industry and Trade to the Ministry of Finance manage; The Ministry of Finance requests the Ministry of Industry and Trade to carefully evaluate the legal basis, advantages, disadvantages, solutions and implementation roadmap to have a basis to report to competent authorities for consideration and decision. Build and implement increased purchases, additional purchases, and compensatory purchases of national petroleum reserves.
Regarding resolving difficulties and obstacles in the preservation of national petroleum reserves, in document No. 13833/BTC-TCDT dated December 14, 2023 sent to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Finance said: Since The National Reserve Law promulgated in 2012 (effective from July 1, 2013) up to now, the Ministry of Industry and Trade preserves national petroleum reserves together with commercial petroleum under storage contracts, supporting Record the preservation contracts signed with 04 enterprises and do not select a preservation enterprise according to the provisions of Article 51, Article 52, Article 53 of the Law on National Reserves; Article 13, Article 15 Decision No. 16/2020/QD-TTg dated May 15, 2020 of the Prime Minister promulgating regulations on management of national petroleum reserves and Article 4 Circular No. 172/2013/TT- BTC dated November 20, 2013 of the Ministry of Finance on regulations on preservation of national reserves.
Every year (from 2014 to 2022), the Ministry of Industry and Trade forwards preservation contracts signed in 2014 through contract appendices to preserve national petroleum reserves in 2023 that have not yet signed a maintenance contract. National petroleum reserve management.
Regarding the import and export of national petroleum reserves: Since the National Reserve Law was promulgated in 2012 until now, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has not developed and implemented increased purchases, additional purchases, or compensatory purchases of petroleum reserves. nation.
National reserve petroleum has never been used for export according to the provisions of the National Reserve Law; Only export and sell (14,751 m3 of national reserve kerosene in 2012), export and convert types (121,435 m3 of conversion of 0.25%S Diesel oil to 0.05%S national reserve Diesel in 2015), loss export (annual according to norms).
The Ministry of Finance also commented on changing the type of diesel reserve (DO) of the Ministry of Industry and Trade – Photo: PVN.
According to the provisions of Article 37 of the National Reserve Law, the Ministry of Industry and Trade is responsible for developing a plan for alternating goods exchange and sending it to the Ministry of Finance for synthesis and submission to the Prime Minister for decision and implementation within the plan year.
Every year, the Prime Minister does not approve the plan to rotate the national reserve gasoline and oil because the national reserve gasoline and oil are stored together with the business gasoline and oil of the enterprise by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and the time cannot be determined. The storage time and actual quantity of national petroleum reserves are rotated in exchange (national petroleum reserves are kept in the same tank as commercial petroleum, so the import and export of petroleum is according to the business plan of the enterprise. usually happens every day).
It is necessary to develop a plan to change the type of DO oil in the national reserve
Also related to the conversion of 0.25%S diesel to 0.05%S diesel of the national reserve, the Ministry of Finance said this issue is the responsibility of the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
According to the provisions of the law on prices and the law on national reserves, before converting the type of DO 0.25S oil to DO 0.05S national reserve, the Ministry of Finance believes that the Ministry of Industry and Trade must build Prepare a dossier for the minimum selling price of 0.25S DO oil and a dossier for the maximum purchase price of national reserve DO 0.05S oil and send it to the Ministry of Finance to promulgate the minimum selling price and maximum buying price.
According to the Ministry of Finance, at the present time the type conversion has been completed since 2015, the Ministry of Finance does not have enough legal basis to determine the purchase price and selling price of the implemented oil type. The Ministry of Finance requested the Ministry of Industry and Trade to report to the Prime Minister on the process of implementing the tasks approved by the Prime Minister in document No. 5781/VPCP-KTTH dated July 24, 2015 of the Government Office.
On that basis, clearly state the existing problems and solutions according to the provisions of law, submit to the Prime Minister to direct and handle difficulties and obstacles in converting the type of Diesel 0.25%S to Diesel 0. .05%S national reserve.
Regarding the conversion of Ron 92 gasoline to Ron 95 national reserve, the Ministry of Finance said, implementing the Prime Minister’s direction in document No. 3074/VPCP-KTTH dated October 23, 2018 of the Office. The Government on converting the national reserve gasoline type, requests the Ministry of Industry and Trade to develop a plan to convert the RON 92 gasoline type to the national reserve RON 95 as it did in converting the 0, 25%S to Diesel 0.05%S national reserve; Use the money from selling RON 92 gasoline to buy RON 95 gasoline for the national reserve. The state budget does not provide compensation for conversion.
In particular, the Ministry of Industry and Trade selects price calculation options, the difference between selling and buying, and contents related to buying and selling prices, and coordinates with relevant units to clarify the reasons. The conversion of national reserve gasoline types does not apply to the asset auction method, open bidding method, limited bidding method, etc., but designation is carried out in special cases, as a basis for reporting. Report to the competent authority to approve the method of converting gasoline type RON 92 to RON 95 for national reserve.
Up to now, RON 92 gasoline has not been used on the market. The Ministry of Finance requested the Ministry of Industry and Trade to urgently organize and complete the conversion in accordance with the Prime Minister’s direction in document No. 3074. /VPCP-KTTH October 23, 2018.