More on the PetroKaz takeover by the Chinese;
China recently scored a victory in the Great-Game struggle for influence in Central Asia. On Monday, China National Petroleum Corp. reached a $4 billion deal to buy Canada’s PetroKazakhstan, which produces about 150,000 barrels of oil a day in Kazakhstan. The deal, if consummated as expected, will consolidate China’s economic presence in the energy-rich and geopolitically important region, with potential consequences for U.S. interests.
In a meeting yesterday with reporters and editors at The Washington Times, Foreign Minister Kasymzhomart Tokayev was sober about China’s rising clout. He said he encouraged a U.S. executive to bid on PetroKazakhstan, but the executive told him, “It’s very difficult to compete with the Chinese.” The difficulty for U.S. and other companies is that Chinese firms are willing to overpay for foreign assets, if those purchases will bolster China’s clout abroad and help it secure energy resources. In that regard, the companies serve as a platform for Beijing’s foreign policy goals, while U.S. firms consider market factors.
[…]
Mr. Tokayev recognized China’s ascendancy in the region. “The potential and ambitions of China are growing,” he said. China is already financing construction of an $850 million oil pipeline from Kazakhstan to China, capable of moving 400,000 barrels of crude a day. It is due to come on line in December. Also, Chinese interests own about 60 per cent of another major Kazakh oil producer. In Uzbekistan, China National Petroleum signed a $600-million oil joint venture.
Via China E–Lobby who writes;
“The unnamed executive’s timidity aside, one has to admit the Kazakhs at least tried to keep the firm out of Communist hands. As for the Canadian government, well, let’s just not go there.”
Ah so! (And does this include sending our Fiberal government and their camp-followers to Tiannamen Square for the next MayDay Parade for a Liberal Squishy?)
I think I read somewhere that our former Prime Minister Crechan was hired to go run that outfit in Kazakhstan. What is he doing? He is fueling the fires of the human haters in Communist China! Does the poor fool know that?? Has anyone told him what goes on over there? He was the Champion of da little guy’ wasn’t he? He even called himself ‘da liddle gui from Shew-win-ee-ginn! Is he mad (as hell) or just another oppertunist? We better write up and send a letter of apology to the people of China who are slaving away their lives and being tortured in the gulags of the ‘other’ Chairman.
The Americans are *really* interested in the Oil Sands of Alberta. I will be surprised if they let the Chinese Communist Party get involved. They stopped the Chinese from taking over Unocal. And I believe they will stop them from taking over any company in the Oil Sands, where about half of the worlds known reserves of oil are.
And, before anyone accuses me of wanting the Americans to own more of Canada, just stop and ask yourself if you really think Ottawa will do anything to stop a Chinese takeover of any company based in Canada with interests in the Oil Sands. They won’t. They are in bed with the multi-national corporations, in fact they are owned by some of the same families that control these corporations in my opinion. And in multinational corporations it’s all about short term money. What’s good for the average person means nothing to them.
Alberta needs to be careful.
Let’s play “Who wants to be a superpower”…the country with access to the most oil and gas at the end of the game is the winner.
Yes, Martin B, The last one with the oil reserves wins.
There is drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, but only a capped well or two off Santa Barbra CA in the West and little if any off the East Coast.
It’s called saving for a rainy day. 73s TG