Oil. It makes the world's economy go round. It's the rumoured cause of the wars in Iraq. It's also what emerging economic powers like China and India need most to ensure they keep up with the developed world.
Which all explains both countries' recent interest in acquiring control of Canadian-owned PetroKazakhstan(PetroKaz). China National Petroleum Corp, China's largest oil and gas company, recently outbid India's state-owned oil company, Oil and Natural Gas Corp. Ltd." in a bidding war for rights to control the oil fields of Kazakhstan.
The location of these lucrative fields would be a natural fit for either country, given each's proximity to the country of origin. Having a ready supply of local oil will improve their trade balance, and cut costs even further for two already low-overhead economies. China's coming out on top of this deal can only increase the impact their economy is having on global markets.
Although China and India have just announced an agreement, which will see their countries combining efforts to bid on energy assets, they are still pursuing their own targets as well. They are not limiting themselves to just oil fields either. Anything connected to the petrochemical field is considered essential; plastics are of special importance.
At present, everyone's favourite marketplace for doing natural resource deals seems to be those old hewers of wood and carriers of water people, Canada. According to the "Globe and Mail" there are a number of factors contributing to Canada's appeal as a place to buy your very own petroleum company.
First is the fact that there is plenty available to pick and choose from, second we are not a war zone, or even near by to one, and finally our dollar is still low enough to make purchases relatively cheap. It's not only oil that's being bought up, nor is it only China and India doing the buying. Both French and Swiss companies have bought up interests in mining operations in recent purchases and are looking to buy more. Even that old stalwart of Canadian industry, Inco, could be on the market.
Article comments
1 - Maurice
Great post and great questions that I too have wondered. Maybe we have lacked for far seeing leaders with backbone...
2 - Nancy
Naaaah...why should we pay for oil when we can just declare that Canada has been buying up yellow cake uranium, has WMDs, & is in cahoots w/Al Queda, & just invade? I can hear it now....
3 - CrayonPeople
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4 - Tan The Man
China has a lot more native oil than India does. The thing is, China can't produce its own oil fast enough to fill its needs, which is why importing is so important - it's faster.
5 - Heloise
This subject is getting a lot of coverage on NPR today and lately because of the news that China is courting African oil despite its dictators and love of Communism.
It is interesting how this is all tied to the US takeover of Iraq. Iraq having the second highest oil reserves in the world. In fact all the gas-guzzling nations are trying to line up at least one big oil country for future oil consumption.
It makes you think that everything that has been happening lately is about OIL...I mean everything is about energy and who will control it in the future. The media is so damn busy talking about missing white women when the Chinese and others are setting the stage for nuclear conflict.
To that end here is the latest Press Release, from today on the subject. Jack is still a player:
Even if you are not a baby boomer what happened in the Kennedy White House still matters--I don't mean just the fooling around.
Seriously, here is a press release from today August 25 of newly declassified tapes:
http://www.jfklibrary.org/pr_tape_release_050825.html
The timing is interesting and so is the subject: China and India. I heard on NPR just today that these two countries together make up one-third of mankind.
More tapes will be declassified but for researchers and political watchers check out the timeliness of these tapes.
6 - Chicago Geek
I can foresee that things are going to be worse in near future, as we can see now the Gas prices are climbing high in US. No wonder it will touch $10/gallon in another 2-3 years.
DTS.........................
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