The approval was made on March 12 at a meeting by the board of directors. However, the reason for Son’s resignation has not yet been disclosed.

PetroVietnam General Director Nguyen Vu Truong Son

He was general director of PetroVietnam Exploration Production Corporation (PVEP) in July 2009, then worked as PetroVietnam’s deputy general director from February 2012. He was appointed as the group’s general director from March 2016.

Son, 58, was born in the central province of Quang Tri. He studied at Australia’s RMIT University.

PetroVietnam’s former chairmen Nguyen Xuan Son and Nguyen Quoc Khanh took the position for only a year after being arrested for mismanagement that led to losses of USD69 million. Son was given a death sentence.

Former Chairman Dinh La Thang and Phung Dinh Thuc, former general director, have been prosecuted. They are accused of deliberately violating regulations on economic management and abusing their position and authority to arrogate property, causing losses of VND800 billion (USD35 million) in PetroVietnam’s investment in OceanBank.