UPDATE 2-Russia, Vietnam sign energy, alumina deals

* Gazprom, Petrovietnam to explore Vietnam offshore fields

* UC RUSAL to build 1.5 mln tpy bauxite, alumina complex

* Russia-Vietnam trade seen rising to $3 bln, then $10 bln

* $1.5 bln fertiliser plant planned in Kalmykia republic (Adds fertiliser plant in paragraphs 16-17)

By Denis Dyomkin

MOSCOW, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Russian firms Gazprom (GAZP.MM) and United Company RUSAL signed deals on Monday to participate in natural resources projects in Vietnam as the Kremlin aims to triple annual trade between the two countries to $3 billion.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev presided over the signing of the deals, which will involve Gazprom exploring for oil and gas off the Vietnamese coast, during the visit to Moscow of his Vietnamese counterpart, Nguyen Minh Triet.

"The negotiations confirmed the framework for strategic partnership between Russia and Vietnam," Medvedev said after the meeting.

Russia still enjoys close ties with Vietnam formed during the Soviet era. Medvedev said talks had focused on increasing annual trade between the two countries first to $3 billion, and subsequently $10 billion, from over $1 billion in 2007.

He said the countries were prepared jointly to conduct "geological exploration in Vietnam, Russia and third countries".

Russian gas export monopoly Gazprom signed a 30-year agreement with Vietnamese state oil monopoly group Petrovietnam to explore four blocks of Vietnam's continental shelf. Gazprom said in a statement it would finance initial exploration work.

The companies' existing joint venture, Vietgazprom, will carry out the work. It is already exploring off Vietnam's coast.

Separately, the two sides created a new joint venture, Gazpromviet, to work in Russia and third countries. Gazprom subsidiary Gazprom Zarubezhneftegaz will own 51 percent and Petrovietnam 49 percent of the joint venture, which will work at the Nagumanosvkoye deposit in Russia's Orenburg region.

The blueprint for Russian-Vietnamese partnership in energy is Vietsovpetro, a joint venture between Petrovietnam and state-owned Zarubezhneft from the 1980s, which produces over 150,000 barrels of oil a day on average from the Bach Ho field.

ALUMINA REFINERY