Vietnam has great opportunities to expand industrial cooperation with EU countries.

At the European Regional Trade Counselor Conference held on 18 and 19/2024 in Italy, speaking and proposing solutions to promote industrial cooperation with European countries, Mr. Phan Dang Phong - Director of the Institute of Mechanical Research ( Ministry of Industry and Trade ) said that currently, Vietnam is prioritizing the development of basic industries such as: Metallurgy, chemicals, mechanical engineering, energy industry, materials, digital technology and activities to support businesses in digital transformation, developing smart manufacturing... Therefore, the opportunity to expand cooperation in the industrial sector between Vietnam and countries in the European region is huge.

Việt Nam đứng trước cơ hội mở rộng hợp tác công nghiệp với các nước EU là rất lớn

Mr. Phan Dang Phong - Director of the Institute of Mechanical Research (Ministry of Industry and Trade) gave a speech and proposed solutions to promote industrial cooperation with European countries at the Conference of Trade Counselors in the European region.

Firstly, in Decision 2795/QD-BCT, the Ministry of Industry and Trade approved the Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy for the Industry and Trade sector. This strategy focuses on: Developing high-tech industry, bio-industry, developing products according to value chains in priority industries, improving productivity and quality... becoming a consistent orientation for the organization and implementation of the Ministry's activities in line with the goals and requirements of science and technology development to serve the restructuring of the Industry and Trade sector from now until 2030.

One of the important contents in the Strategy is to prioritize the tasks of mastering the technology of equipment and entire equipment lines in the industrial sector.

For the mechanical engineering industry today, there are a number of equipment lines in a number of industries that need to be researched to master the technology, especially in design such as: in energy (including: gas electricity, wind power, waste electricity, solar power); in mineral exploitation and processing; in technology and equipment for mining and processing rare earth; in raw material production...

For example, in the offshore wind sector, buoy and mooring technology for wind turbines is an important step that needs to be developed.

However, according to Director Phan Dang Phong, the implementation of design and equipment supply packages for the above fields is mostly carried out by foreign contractors, Vietnamese mechanical enterprises only participate in some stages according to foreign designs with low costs such as structural manufacturing, construction and installation... Therefore, currently, Narime Institute and domestic mechanical enterprises are accelerating the research, acquisition and mastery of some design and equipment manufacturing technologies towards self-reliance in design and manufacturing, thereby creating more jobs for the mechanical industry.

“These technologies need partners in Europe; European businesses have potential and all possess the factors that Vietnam needs” - Director Phan Dang Phong commented and hoped that, through the Conference, it is necessary to have the support of Trade Offices in searching for business information as well as verifying information provided by foreign businesses before signing cooperation agreements to avoid risks.

Second, to participate in the global import-export chain of mechanical equipment and components, it is very important to establish a center with sufficient capacity to certify mechanical products manufactured from clean energy sources. Recently, the Mechanical Research Institute has cooperated with a number of partners from Germany in the production and supply of components for them to assemble into their equipment and then sell to third countries. Before signing the contract, they asked Vietnam to declare and commit that the products manufactured must be made from clean energy sources at a certain rate. However, we currently do not have centers to inspect and certify mechanical products in this field and this will be a major obstacle if we want to export equipment to Europe in the near future.

Therefore, the establishment of a center with sufficient capacity to issue certificates for mechanical products manufactured from clean energy sources is very necessary. " We propose to coordinate with the Trade Promotion Agency and the European - American Market Department to find partners , organizations and foreign experts with sufficient capacity and experience to cooperate with Vietnam to implement in the soonest time . We also request that the European missions support the search for information related to organizations and individuals to cooperate in order to speed up the process " - Director Phan Dang Phong proposed.