Samsung Electronics and the Vietnamese government are strengthening their relationship, as the two entities have entered a high-level meeting earlier this week to discuss new potential collaborations and exchange requests. The Vietnamese government is is well-aware of Samsung’s contribution to the country’s economy and is looking to strengthen the partnership with new projects, and in return, Samsung is reportedly looking to tap into the country’s private supply of renewable energy.

In the meeting, Vietnam Minister of Industry and Trade (MOIT) Nguyen Hong Dien reportedly took the opportunity to express thanks for Samsung’s contribution to shaping Vietnam’s economy, especially since Vietnam was the only ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) country to have experienced positive economic growth during the widespread COVID-19 pandemic.

The Vietnamese government is now looking to create other joint projects with Samsung’s contribution, and has reportedly discussed a training program for consultants, a human resource training program, and an advisory improvement support program.

More importantly, Samsung’s executives and Nguyen Hong Dien have reportedly discussed the idea of building a local supplier pipeline for Samsung, seeing how the company’s smartphones manufactured in Vietnam account for 1/4th of the country’s exports.

Samsung Electronics wants renewable energy

In recent years, Samsung’s been making bigger efforts towards achieving sustainability and renewable energy, and this shift in mentality is clearly visible at a consumer level. More of the company’s home electronics are being shipped in eco-packaging, and the company’s been redesigning the retail packaging of its mobile devices to have a lesser negative impact on the environment.

Samsung has recently achieved 100% renewable energy at its factories in the USA, Europe, and China, but the company is now looking to increase its renewable energy footprint in Vietnam. To this goal, Samsung has reportedly asked for the MOIT’s permission to buy between 400MW and 1,000MW of renewable energy from private companies as opposed to obtaining it directly from the Vietnamese government.

It’s unclear if this request was or will be approved, but either way, Samsung is already expanding its influence in the region. Last year, the company started building Southeast Asia’s biggest R&D facility in the city of Hanoi.