Ambassador Bird was speaking during a meeting with Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien on July 2 in Hanoi.

In response, Minister Dien underscored the significance of the Trade Ministerial Dialogue and the Energy and Minerals Dialogue as key platforms for advancing sectoral cooperation. He proposed that both sides agree a timeline to hold the inaugural Energy and Minerals Dialogue in 2025, and called for strengthened coordination to achieve the shared goal of raising bilateral trade to $20 billion and doubling two-way investment.

The Australian ambassador welcomed the proposals and conveyed Canberra’s intention to host both dialogue mechanisms in Vietnam next year. She also outlined priority areas in Australia’s development cooperation agenda, particularly through the Aus4Growth programme, which has allocated around AUD18 million to support Vietnam’s energy transition projects.

Australia is eager to promote regulatory reform and capacity-building initiatives that help Vietnam integrate higher shares of renewable energy while ensuring system reliability and market competitiveness, Bird stated. She added that the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s endorsement of energy-related agreements under Aus4Growth would be instrumental in translating commitments into practical outcomes.

In multilateral and regional contexts, the Australian ambassador expressed appreciation for Vietnam’s close coordination as Australia takes on the role of chair of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) Commission in 2025. Australia will continue supporting Vietnam’s preparation to assume this role in 2026, and will also contribute to the implementation of the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area and Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership through the Regional Trade for Development initiative.

A highlight of the meeting was the signing of an MoUs between the Electricity Regulatory Authority of Vietnam and the Australian Embassy. The agreement establishes a technical cooperation framework to promote the development of Vietnam’s competitive electricity market, including regulatory capacity, market design, and system operations aligned with the country’s energy transition strategy.

Minister Nguyen Hong Dien and Ambassador Gillian Bird witness the MoU signing to support Vietnam’s competitive power market. Photo: Ministry of Industry and Trade

The MoU aims to facilitate information exchange, training, and experience-sharing between the two institutions, with a view to improving power sector governance and enabling Vietnam to operate an electricity market that accommodates a high share of renewables.

According to Minister Dien, the partnership will help enhance Vietnam’s ability to regulate and operate its electricity market efficiently, while laying a solid foundation for long-term collaboration with Australia in the energy sector.

In the first six months of 2025, total trade turnover between Vietnam and Australia reached $6.8 billion. Vietnam’s exports to Australia stood at $3.1 billion, down 0.5 per cent on-year, while imports increased by 0.4 per cent to $3.7 billion. Vietnam posted a trade deficit of $583.6 million, up 5.3 per cent compared to the same period in 2024.