China's race for energy resources only just heating up

0 Comments | AFP, January, 2006

SHANGHAI (AFP) — China's 2.3-billion-dollar Nigerian oil venture is a major step forward for the energy-ravenous country as it seeks to power its fast-growing economy but analysts have said the race was just heating up.

China National Overseas Oil Corp (CNOOC)'s purchase of a 45 percent stake in the Akpo field off the West African nation is the biggest overseas investment by Beijing since China National Petroleum Corp's (CNPC) took over central Asia's PetroKazakhstan Inc for 4.18 billion dollars in October.

That deal was the largest ever by a Chinese corporation and added to a small but growing list of successes around the globe as China desperately seeks fuel for its economy.

India and China, often fierce rivals in the race for global energy resources, last...