Beijing to import more foreign oil<\/p>\n
BEIJING (UPI): Energy ravenous China announced Saturday it
\nwill import more foreign oil to cope with soaring demand in the
\nrapidly modernizing country exhausting its reserves in 20 years.<\/p>\n
Refineries under the state-run China Petrochemical Corporation
\nprocessed 20 million tons of imported oil in the past year and
\nanticipate more in 1997, said President Sheng Huaren.<\/p>\n
With a population of 1.2 billion, China has one of the world's
\nlowest levels of mineral resources per capita. It has been forced
\nto import growing amounts of crude oil to fuel its rapid
\nexpansion because of stagnating production at home.<\/p>\n
"The 20 million tons made up 20 percent of the total amount
\nprocessed," Sheng said.<\/p>\n
"The soaring need for finished oil and a relatively stable
\nsupply of onshore oil have forced refineries to look into
\noverseas markets," Sheng acknowledged.<\/p>\n
Much to the chagrin of the United States, China has long been
\nholding discussions with Iraq to cooperate in seismic studies and
\nexploration in Iraqi oilfields.<\/p>\n
Under strict U.N. sanctions since the 1990 invasion of Kuwait,
\nIraq was formally given permission in August to sell d2 billion
\nworth of oil every six months to buy food and medicine.<\/p>\n
China is emerging as an important player in international
\ncrude oil exploration, having signed last year a cooperation
\nagreement with Nigeria.<\/p>\n
Chinese oil and related state companies have stakes in
\noilfields in Malaysia and Indonesia. Africa's rich resources have
\nalso been targeted as a possibility because the continent has not
\nyet been dominated by Western powers.<\/p>\n
Official figures published in the China Daily showed oil
\nproduction in China stood at an average of 3 million barrels per
\nday in 1995, and is expected to reach 3.3 million barrels per day
\nby 2000, while demand reaches 3.04 million barrels per day.<\/p>\n
Industry experts predict the figure will reach 3.9 million
\nbarrels per day by the turn of the century.<\/p>\n
A net importer of oil since late 1993, China imported 18.4
\nmillion tons during the first 10 months of 1996, up 63 percent
\nfrom the previous year.<\/p>\n
China has been urging foreign-funded exploration in the
\nnorthwestern Xinjiang region as major fields in the north and
\neast have peaked. Among the oil giants which have signed
\ncontracts to explore and tap the Tarim Basin, the foreboding
\ndesert believed to hold reserves equal to Saudi Arabia, are
\nTexaco and Italy's Agip Petroli.<\/p>\n
But foreign firms eager for a slice of the potentially huge
\nChinese oil market have been disappointed by Beijing's delays in
\nallowing them to sell domestically<\/p>\n
Five foreign companies -- Arco, Caltex, Amoco, Exxon and Saudi
\nAramco, have Been involved in plans to upgrade refineries, but
\nsources said progress has been slow due to the difficulty in
\nagreeing in terms with Chinese refiners.<\/p>\n
Beijing has acknowledged its proved reserves amount to only 5
\nbillion tons, of which 2.8 billion have been exploited. With the
\npresent annual exploitation rate of 104 million tons, the reserve
\nwill be exhausted in two decades.<\/p>\n
The scenario has prompted China to speed up its exploration of
\nnatural gas which can be exploited for another 40 to 80 years.<\/p>\n
A senior official with the China National Petroleum Corp.,
\nwhich supervises onshore oil operations, said the country plans
\nto double its annual natural gas production capacity to 30
\nbillion cubic meters by 2005.<\/p>\n
He said China is expected to verify additional onshore
\nreserves of 1,000 billion cubic meters by the end of the century.<\/p>",
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