Many years in charge of the petroleum sector

The Ministry of Public Security's Security Investigation Agency has just executed a decision to prosecute, an arrest warrant and a search warrant against Mr. Do Thang Hai (60 years old), Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade, for the crime of Receiving bribes.

Mr. Do Thang Hai was appointed as Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade from January 2014. Previously, Mr. Do Thang Hai held the following positions: Director of the International Trading Center, Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry (VCCI); Head of International Cooperation Department, Trade Promotion Agency (former Ministry of Trade); Deputy Director of Trade Promotion Agency and then Director of Trade Promotion Agency (Ministry of Industry and Trade).

According to his assigned functions and tasks, Deputy Minister Do Thang Hai was assigned to be the spokesperson of the Ministry of Industry and Trade. In addition, Mr. Hai was assigned to direct work in the fields of domestic market development, trade promotion, mechanical industry, manufacturing industry, supporting industry, metallurgy and minerals (except for oil and gas and coal).

Deputy Minister Do Thang Hai.jpg
Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do Thang Hai.

Mr. Do Thang Hai directly directs the following units: Domestic Market Department, European - American Market Department (for work related to the American market), Department of Industry (for work related to mechanical industry, manufacturing industry, supporting industry; metallurgy and minerals), Trade Promotion Department, Southern Work Department, Center for Health - Labor Environment of Industry and Trade...

Mr. Hai also, on behalf of the Ministry, directed the implementation of state management in the fields of Steel, Vietnam National Petroleum Corporation, Vietnam Engine and Agricultural Machinery Corporation - JSC (VEAM), Vietnam Machinery and Industrial Equipment Corporation - JSC (MIE), Vietnam Industrial Construction Corporation (VINAINCON).

The licensing of petroleum wholesale enterprises such as Xuyen Viet Oil Transport and Trading Company Limited is checked and assessed by the Domestic Market Department, then submitted to the Ministry's leaders for licensing. There are nearly 40 licensed wholesale enterprises nationwide.

The Domestic Market Department, which Mr. Do Thang Hai is in charge of, is responsible for examining, appraising and submitting to the Ministry's leaders for approval, granting, re-granting, amending, supplementing, extending, revoking the right to use, and revoking all types of licenses, certificates, and business confirmation certificates according to the provisions of law. These include business licenses, certificates, and certificates of eligibility to trade in petroleum and gas products.

How is Xuyen Viet Oil licensed?

Xuyen Viet Oil Company was first granted a license to import and export petroleum on August 22, 2016. The company was re-granted a license to import and export petroleum on November 19, 2021.

When licensed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the company has all the conditions as prescribed in Article 7 of Decree No. 83/2014/ND-CP. Accordingly, regarding petroleum agents (according to regulations, enterprises need to have 40 agents), Xuyen Viet Oil Company has 49 agents including 17 agents directly signed agency contracts by the parent company Xuyen Viet Oil and 32 agents belonging to the subsidiary of Xuyen Viet Oil Company (Dai Dong Xuan Company).

However, the inspection conclusion of the Ministry of Industry and Trade pointed out that: To meet the conditions for the distribution system, there are 37 retail agents of Dai Dong Xuan Joint Stock Company that Xuyen Viet Oil Company declared as belonging to its system through the parent-subsidiary company mechanism. Specifically, Xuyen Viet Oil contributed over 50% of capital to Dai Dong Xuan Company.

However, it is worth mentioning that, on the same day the Ministry of Industry and Trade granted the license for petroleum import and export, Xuyen Viet Oil Company and Dai Dong Xuan Joint Stock Company signed a document to cancel the share transfer contract and at the time of cancellation, "the two parties had not yet performed any rights and obligations of the signed contract".

In conclusion with Xuyen Viet Oil, the inspection team of the Ministry of Industry and Trade recommended that the Domestic Market Department promptly correct errors in the appraisal and issuance of petroleum business licenses and inspect and supervise the maintenance of petroleum business conditions.

At the end of the inspection, the Ministry of Industry and Trade recorded that at the time of the inspection, Xuyen Viet Oil Company had 10 affiliated retail gasoline stores and 18 retail gasoline agents. Xuyen Viet Oil Company was administratively sanctioned and had its gasoline export and import business license revoked for 1.5 months for violating the regulations on not maintaining and meeting the required number of gasoline retail agents as prescribed above.

In 2023, the Ministry of Industry and Trade conducted an inspection of compliance with legal regulations in petroleum trading for Xuyen Viet Oil Company. At the time of the inspection, the Ministry of Industry and Trade recorded that Xuyen Viet Oil Company had 10 petroleum retail stores. However, at the time of the inspection, 3 stores had expired Certificates of eligibility for petroleum retail and 20 petroleum retail agency contracts signed with petroleum retail agents that were still in effect.

On the basis of Xuyen Viet Oil Company continuing to fail to maintain and meet the conditions for a petroleum wholesaler, on August 11, 2023, the Ministry of Industry and Trade issued Decision No. 2081/QD-BCT revoking the Petroleum Export and Import Business License of Xuyen Viet Oil Company.

From the arrest of Mr. Le Duy Minh: Tax money people pay when buying gasoline is misappropriated . Gasoline selling businesses only "collect" environmental protection tax on gasoline to pay into the budget. But many businesses collect on their behalf and then delay in keeping and not paying this tax to the budget.