China Guns For Ghana’s Oil

High-powered team leaves Beijing for Accra to seek drilling license in the aftermath of Kufuor’s 24-hour visit
A powerful Chinese delegation of some of the country’s finest power brokers hits Accra next Monday in search of what industry sources here in Beijing, China, say is the emerging power’s investment drive in Ghana’s newly found oil industry.

The delegation, this paper gathered, would be led by two of China’s most influential shot-callers and members of the all-powerful China People’s Political Consultative Committee (CPPCC), which once served as the de-facto legislature of China and remains an unofficial Upper House of China’s parliament.

Sources say the delegation would arrive as part of a team by China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), a New York and Hong Kong stock exchanges-listed company with a focus on exploration and development of crude oil and natural gas and Smart Rich Energy Finance (Holdings) Limited.

CNOOC is China’s third largest national oil company, with total assets of over $14 billion, while Smart Rich Energy Finance (Holdings) is a multi-million dollar company with interest in the provision of financial information services, credit card security device and management services.

GYE NYAME CONCORD gathered that Mr Zhu Wellin, one of the two CPPCC top guns and Executive Vice President of CNOOC, will lead the delegation to Ghana with his colleague Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Smart Rich, whose name was unavailable by press time.

Other members of the team, this paper gathered, would include geo-physicists, geologists oil drilling and exploration experts.

Their main mission is to secure rights to an oil drilling license and an allocated block in Ghana’s opening oil industry besides other investment interest, this reporter gathered.

Experts say the Chinese, whose company was once allocated one of the successful offshore oil blocks that Kosmos and Tullow Oil recently made significant oil finds in but failed to prospect, are now seething with regret over what they could have had. They have resolved to catch up to the Americans in the competition for investment in Ghana’s opening oil industry, sources told this paper.

The American-led Kosmos and London-based Tullow Oil companies both announced in June last year that they have hit oil in commercial quantities off Ghana’s Cape Three Points, sparking a frenzy among oil drilling companies and nations for Ghana’s oil blocks.

Now comes the Chinese, who have in recent years upped their investment portfolio in Africa’s oil industry and have been pushing for leading roles in the estimated eight per cent of world oil reserves controlled by African economies, including Nigeria, Libya, Algeria, Egypt, Sudan, Angola, Equatorial Guinea and emerging oil states like Ghana.

Admitting that he is aware a Chinese delegation with interest in the oil sector would be visiting Ghana without divulging further detail in a short interview with this paper, Ghana’s Ambassador to China, Afare Donkor, told this paper that China has becomes one of Ghana’s leading investment sources, with huge investment in the roads, energy, hospitality and other sectors.

As a country in need of investment we welcome investors whose aspirations fit into ours, he told this paper.

During his 24-hour trip here to visit Ghana’s Olympic team and meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao and other world leaders, a number of high-flying Chinese delegations also took time to discuss business with the Ghanaian leader.

Among them was a delegation from the Chinese company constructing the $600 million Bui hydro dam, Sinohydro Corporation.

The Chinese company’s Group President, Fan Jixiang and Group Vice President and Board Chairman Huang Baodong at their meeting with Ghana’s President informed him that the Chinese government had just approved its counterpart funding for the 400 megawatts power project.

They thanked President Kufuor for his commitment to the project and his government’s early payment of its 10% counterpart funding of the project.

President Kufuor urged them on his part to ensure the speedy completion of the project upon receipt of the fund from EXIMBANK of China, saying the nation looks forward to the completion of the project on time.