Conditions for applying for license to practice groundwater drilling in Vietnam from July 1, 2024

Conditions for issuance of license to practice groundwater drilling in Vietnam from July 1, 2024 (Photo from the Internet)

Regarding this matter, LawNet would like to answer as follows: 

1. Conditions for issuance of license to practice groundwater drilling in Vietnam

According to Article 31 of Decree 54/2024/ND-CP, an organization/individual practicing groundwater drilling shall meet the following conditions:

- Have a decision to establish the organization by a competent authority or one of the types of business registration certificates, business registration certificates and taxpayer registration, enterprise registration certificates for organizations, or business household registration certificates for groups of individuals, households issued by competent state agencies.

- The head of the organization or the person primarily responsible for the technical aspects of the organization or individual practicing (hereinafter generally referred to as the person primarily responsible for the technical aspects) must satisfy the following conditions:

+ For small-scale groundwater drilling practice:

Must have a professional qualification of at least intermediate level in geology or drilling, or be a level 3/7 skilled driller or equivalent.

If none of the above-mentioned qualifications are held, they must have directly executed at least 3 groundwater drilling projects;

+ For medium-scale groundwater drilling practice:

Must have a professional qualification of at least intermediate level in geology or drilling. In addition, must have directly participated in drafting at least 1 project proposal, exploration report, extraction well system design, or directed the execution of at least 3 groundwater drilling projects with a flow rate of 200 m³/day-night or more;

+ For large-scale groundwater drilling practice:

Must have a professional qualification of at least undergraduate level in geology or drilling. In addition, must have directly participated in drafting at least 3 project proposals, exploration reports, extraction well system designs, or directed the execution of at least 3 groundwater drilling projects with a flow rate of 3,000 m³/day-night or more.

2. Goundwater drilling practicing scale in Vietnam

The goundwater drilling practicing scale in Vietnam is regulated as follows:

- Small-scale groundwater drilling practice involves drilling and installing groundwater wells with casing or wall pipe diameters not exceeding 110 mm and pertains to projects with a flow rate of less than 200 m³/day-night;

- Medium-scale groundwater drilling practice involves drilling and installing groundwater wells with casing or wall pipe diameters not exceeding 250 mm and pertains to projects with a flow rate ranging from 200 m³/day-night to below 3,000 m³/day-night;

- Large-scale groundwater drilling practice includes cases not stipulated at points a and b of clause 1, Article 30 of Decree 54/2024/ND-CP.

(Clause 1, Article 30 of Decree 54/2024/ND-CP)

3. Validity period of a license to practice groundwater drilling

The validity period of a license to practice groundwater drilling in Vietnam is a maximum of 10 years and can be extended multiple times, with each extension not exceeding 5 years.

(Clause 3, Article 30 of Decree 54/2024/ND-CP)

4. Requirements to be satisfied by organizations/individuals practicing groundwater drilling in Vietnam

- Organizations and individuals practicing groundwater drilling have the following obligations:

+ Implement measures to ensure the safety of people and groundwater drilling projects;

+ Do not cause land subsidence, saltwater intrusion, or pollution of aquifers;

+ Implement other measures to protect groundwater and the environment.

- Comply with drilling technical procedures and regulations on groundwater protection; ensure that the person primarily responsible for technical aspects is present at the site to direct during the drilling and well installation period; in case of land subsidence or other unusual incidents affecting construction projects and the lives of people in the area of the construction project, immediately stop construction and handle, rectify promptly, while being responsible for fully compensating for damages to people and property caused by the incident, and report immediately to local authorities, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment where the project is located, and the licensing agency.

- Notify in writing about the location, scale of the groundwater drilling project, and the estimated construction time to the commune People's Committee, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment where the project is located at least 9 days before construction.

- Within 30 days after the completion of construction, update information and data on geological structure and stratigraphy at the drilling locations into the National Water Resources Information and Database System.

- Notify in writing at least 30 days in advance to the licensing agency when there is a change in the person primarily responsible for technical aspects. At the same time, attached documents proving the capacity of the person primarily responsible for technical aspects as stipulated in Article 31 of Decree 54/2024/ND-CP.

- Annually, before January 30th of the following year, compile the groundwater drilling projects completed according to Form 56 attached to Decree 54/2024/ND-CP and report to the licensing agency.

(Article 33 of Decree 54/2024/ND-CP)

Duong Thi Hoai Nhi

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