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VOV.VN - The Republic of Korea’s Samil Pharmaceutical is expanding its operations in Vietnam to reduce production costs and seek new growth opportunities.

The move comes as the company’s Chairman Heo Seung Beom increases his shareholding to support the company’s third-generation leadership transition.

Established in 1947, Samil Pharmaceutical is widely known in the Republic of Korea for its children’s antipyretic medicine Brupen. It also manufactures and markets pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals including Libact, Foributin and Monoprost.

Under its strategic shift, the company is increasingly focusing on overseas production. In 2022, Samil Pharmaceutical completed a contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) facility in Vietnam specialising in ophthalmic products.

The plant spans about 24,800 square metres and has an annual production capacity of 330 million eye-drop units.

The company aims to take advantage of lower labour costs in Vietnam to strengthen its price competitiveness. However, the facility has not yet entered full-scale commercial production, as it awaits Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) approvals in key target markets.

Following GMP certification from Vietnamese authorities in 2024, Samil Pharmaceutical is now seeking approval from the RoK’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety in the second half of this year. The company said the approval process is expected to take around two to three months.

Việt Nam spent approximately US$2.93 billion importing nearly 3.37 million tonnes of petroleum products in the first quarter of 2026, an increase of 77.8 per cent in value and over 44 per cent in volume compared to the same period last year.

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam's energy imports have increased sharply in the first three months of 2026, reflecting a rapid recovery in domestic consumption demand along with pressure to secure supply in the face of geopolitical instability and global energy price fluctuations.

Data from Việt Nam Customs shows that the country spent approximately US$2.93 billion importing nearly 3.37 million tonnes of petroleum products in the first quarter of 2026, an increase of 77.8 per cent in value and over 44 per cent in volume compared to the same period last year.

Aside from refined petroleum products, many other energy products also recorded a sharp increase, including coal imports, which rose by 76.4 per cent to nearly $2.8 billion, and crude oil, which surged by 381 per cent to $2.4 billion.

In the first half of April, the upward trend in imports continued, with import value of crude oil and petroleum products approaching $1.25 billion.

Experts attributed the sharp increase in energy imports this year to the rebound of domestic consumption in the wake of a recovered industrial production. The steel, cement, chemical, thermal power and transportation sectors have all recorded higher fuel consumption compared to the same period last year.

Meanwhile, domestic energy supply has not met demand. Domestic crude oil production has been declining for many years due to major fields entering a natural depletion phase.

At the same time, the country's two main refineries, Dung Quất and Nghi Sơn, although operating, are still insufficient to fully meet market demand, especially during periods of significant global oil price fluctuations.

Another factor causing the surge in energy imports was the impact of global geopolitical instability. Conflict in the Middle East in the first quarter caused international oil prices to surge at times, leading to escalating energy import costs. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, key businesses have had to significantly increase imports since March to ensure domestic supply and maintain safe inventory levels.

Experts forecast that the trend of sharply increasing energy imports will continue for the next few years as the economy maintains its high growth target, while many gas-fired power, petrochemical and heavy industry projects are put into operation. This will put a significant pressure on trade balance as well as national energy security strategy.

The move is followed a comprehensive review of all 454 administrative procedures under its jurisdiction by the ministry in April.

The Ministry of Construction (MoC) has proposed to abolish, simplify, and decentralize 157 procedures, accounting for nearly 35% of the total.

The move is followed a comprehensive review of all 454 administrative procedures under its jurisdiction by the ministry in April.

According to the Chief of the MoC Office, Mr. Lam Van Hoang, the ministry also recommended cutting 19 investment and business sectors (a 30% reduction) and 102 out of 249 business conditions, achieving a reduction rate of nearly 41%.

In May, the ministry will continue to focus on substantive reductions in administrative procedures, business conditions, compliance costs, and processing times. Furthermore, it aims to accelerate decentralization and the delegation of power, coupled with enhanced inspection and supervision to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of state management.

Notably, Mr. Hoang stated that several procedures related to the opening and closing of airports, as well as the issuance of airport registration certificates, have been proposed for abolition in a new draft decree recently submitted to the Government.

Specifically, under the draft Decree on Airports and Landing Strips, the MoC is implementing decentralization based on the principle of cutting and simplifying administrative procedures related to production and business activities. The goal is to avoid deep interference in corporate operations, creating a fair, transparent, safe, and efficient investment environment in line with the Party and Government’s policy on streamlining the state apparatus.

The draft also aims to limit the use of multiple licenses in management, shifting instead toward a "post-audit" (post-inspection) model. This move ensures alignment with international practices and the standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

The MoC reported that the draft simplifies, cuts, or decentralizes 14 out of 26 administrative procedures in the aviation sector. Ten procedures are slated for abolition, including those for opening airports and airfields, as well as a group of procedures for granting airport registration certificates—such as temporary registration, official registration, and the modification or re-issuance of these certificates.