Dung Quat refinery spouts profit Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical Company carries out regular safety checks at the Dung Quat Oil Refinery Plant in central Quang Ngai Province. - VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Long HA NOI  (VNS) - The Dung Quat Oil Refinery Plant, which is operated by the Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical Company (BSR), sold 5 million tonnes of oil and gas products in the first nine months of this year. CEO Nguyen Hoai Giang told Vnexpress that the plant earned over VND112 trillion (US$5.3 billion) in revenue and an after-tax profit of VND2.3 trillion ($109 million). It contributed almost VND20 trillion ($952 million) to the State coffers in the period, surpassing its yearly target of VND200 billion ($9.5 million). If it operated continuously in the coming months, the plant could reach a processing capacity of 6.5 million tonnes and make a profit of more than VND3 trillion ($142 million) this year, said Giang. He said this was the first year the BSR had targeted a profit over VND2.1 trillion ($100 million) after receiving a preferential finance policy from the Government. Giang said the BSR would continue to ask JGC Corp of Japan to study the second stage of the Dung Quat Oil refinery expansion and confirmed that a detailed feasibility study would be approved this November to send to the Government for a final decision. PetroVietnam has worked with Russian GazpromNeft energy group about the possibility of co-ordinating in the field of oil and gas, which is mainly related to investment co-operation in the Dung Quat oil refinery. The Russian partner has proposed to expand and raise the plant's designed capacity from the current 6.5 million tonnes to 12 million tonnes a year. The related documents are expected to be signed during the visit of the Russian Prime Minister to Viet Nam by the end of this year. The plant is currently refining sweet crude oil produced in South East Asia. Following the completion of the expansion, the refinery will process 50 per cent of Middle East sour crude oil and 50 per cent of sweet crude oil. The expansion project will add a crude pre-flasher, vacuum distillation unit, mercury removal unit and other facilities. Existing units of the refinery will be upgraded to process the Middle East sour crude oil. In the four years of the refinery's operation, BSR has sold over 21 million tonnes of product. - VNS