Beijing offers South China Sea oilfields for joint development

The platform 981 in the South China Sea. (Photo/Xinhua)

China National Offshore Oil, one of the country's three main state oil companies, has opened up nine areas of the South China Sea to foreign partners for joint development, the first time in 20 years that the country has planned oil exploration in the controversial area, where it has disputing territorial claims with other countries.
The areas in question are close to Vietnam, especially Wan'an Bank that contains abundant natural gas and oil resources. Vietnam has been exploring the area which may overlap with those China has opened, said professor Li Jinming at Xiamen Nanyang University, according to National Business Daily, a Chinese-language news website.
The South China Sea is said to contain 23 billion to 30 billion tons of high-quality oil.
At a press conference on Sunday, Chinese foreign affairs spokesman Hong Lei said opening up these areas is part of the oil company's operations and is in line with Chinese law and international customs. As to how would this might influence ties with Hanoi, the spokesman said China stands by its sovereignty claim and will try to resolve its dispute with Vietnam though negotiation and seek joint exploration.
Vietnam has explored oil resources in partnership with other countries in the past. In the 1970s, it partnered with energy groups in the United States and the Soviet Union to excavate four oilfields which have generated huge profits since then, according to International Finance News, a Chinese-language news agency which is a subsidiary of the state-run People's Daily.
China's previous attempt to explore oil resources in South China Sea have been unsuccessful however. In 1992, China National Offshore Oil signed a contract with Crestone Energy Cooperation of the US to explore an oilfield near Wan-an Bank but Vietnam intervened as the area was connected to an oilfield it was already developing.
In May this year, China built the oil rig 981 in the South China Sea, the country's first deepwater platform in the area. The platform can also be used like an aircraft carrier to help China assert its sovereignty over the area in addition to its economic interests, said professor Li, according to National Business Daily.

Source :http://www.wantchinatimes.com