TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2004
Gabon signs oil deal with China
REUTERS
LIBREVILLE: Total Gabon has signed an oil contract with a subsidiary of China's Sinopec under which Gabonese crude will be sold to the huge Asian country for the first time, Gabon's oil minister said on Sunday.
Sinopec is Asia's largest refiner and China's second-largest oil and gas producer.
Total Gabon, a unit of France's oil major Total SA, is Gabon's first oil operator -- accounting for around half of the country's production.
The deal was signed on Saturday, on the eve of Chinese President Hu Jintao's arrival to Gabon for a three-day visit --the first by a Chinese head of state to the West African nation since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1974.
Oil minister Richard Onouviet gave no details of the contract but hinted more deals were in the pipeline.
"This is just the beginning of a process," Onouviet told state radio.
Despite lagging well behind oil giants Nigeria and Angola, Gabon is a significant crude producer in sub-Saharan Africa. Output is currently more than 200,000 barrels per day but has been declining steadily since 1998.
Hu was expected to arrive in Gabon later on Sunday, after travelling to France and Egypt. He is also due to visit Algeria.
Over the past few months, Chinese officials have stepped up their diplomatic offensive in Africa, hoping to strengthen Beijing's influence and boost trade ties, as well as elbow Taiwan out of its footholds on the continent.
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