Libyan rebels: China, Russia, India will have trouble getting oil deals

[Akasa]

Anyone else wondering why NATO was so eager in "spreading human rights and democracy" in Libya by bombing civilian infrastructure and supply lines?

Libya Rebel Oil Official Says China, Russia Will Have Trouble Getting New Deals - WSJ.com

LONDON (Dow Jones)--Global powers who took chilly positions toward Libya's insurgents--such as China, Russia or India--will have trouble getting new oil contracts in the future, a spokesman for a rebel-controlled company said this week.

He was speaking as fighters opposing the regime of Col. Moammar Gadhafi entered the capital Tripoli over the weekend. Though Gadhafi himself is still nowhere to be found, the development triggered hopes foreign oil companies may be closer to return to Libya after pulling out in February.

Speaking to Dow Jones over the phone, a spokesman for the Arabian Gulf Oil Co. said "for countries that took hostile positions toward the TNC [rebel Transitional National Council], it will be difficult in the future to get new concessions," citing India, China and Russia. The spokesman said the TNC "will honor existing contracts."

But being unable to develop new resources in the country that holds Africa's largest oil and gas reserves would be a setback for these countries. Unlike the U.S. and European nations, which supported the rebels, the three only had a fledgling presence in Libya prior to the war.

China received 11% of Libya's oil production in 2010 out of 1.8 million barrels of oil a day produced in the North African nation last year.

China and India have both invested in exploration contracts in the North African nation to help satisfy the energy needs of their booming economies, while Russia's OAO Gazprom (GAZP.RS) also has got rights to acreage in a bid to diversify its sources of natural gas production.???

India, Russia and China have yet to formally recognize the TNC as the sole Libyan authority, despite more than 40 other countries saying it is now the country's legitimate authority.

-By Benoit Faucon, Dow Jones Newswires; benoit.faucon@dowjones.com​

 

[CardSharp]

I thought China made an oil deal with the rebel months back. Will find the source, it was in an article on the Asia times.

 

[FaujHistorian]

Anyone else wondering why NATO was so eager in "spreading human rights and democracy" in Libya by bombing civilian infrastructure and supply lines?

Libya Rebel Oil Official Says China, Russia Will Have Trouble Getting New Deals - WSJ.com

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Please do no forget that China India Russia supported Qaddafi the butcher for OIL.

At least India should have stood for humanity and opposed Gaddafi's bombing of his own people.

Syria is in the same boat now. 2000 killed by Assad's goon

It is time that China stood for the human rights. If not, tomorrow when Assad is toppled, you will be complaining as to why Chinese are being kicked out of Syria.

It is all up to you. You make your choices and then learn to live with the outcome. No need to start conspiracy theories.

peace.​

 

[CardSharp]

Please do no forget that China India Russia supported Qaddafi the butcher for OIL.

At least India should have stood for humanity and opposed Gaddafi's bombing of his own people.

Syria is in the same boat now. 2000 killed by Assad's goon

It is time that China stood for the human rights. If not, tomorrow when Assad is toppled, you will be complaining as to why Chinese are being kicked out of Syria.

It is all up to you. You make your choices and then learn to live with the outcome. No need to start conspiracy theories.

peace.

lol what???

Sorry but Gaddafi was friendly with the Republic of China. The PRC has no love lost for Gaddafi.

 

[CardSharp]

And say, how many Chinese are in Syria now? Since you are making the accusation, you would so nice as to provide a source.

 

[President Camacho]

a spokesman for the Arabian Gulf Oil Co. said "for countries that took hostile positions toward the TNC [rebel Transitional National Council], it will be difficult in the future to get new concessions," citing India, China and Russia.

He does not even know what hostile position means.

 

[CardSharp]

Chen Shui Bian with Saif Gaddafi

It is time that the republic of China stood for the human rights. Amirite?

 

[Roybot]

ENI leads Libya oil race; Russia, China may lose out

Aug 22 (Reuters) - Italian oil company Eni led the charge back into Libya on Monday as rebels hailing the end of Muammar Gaddafi's rule warned Russian and Chinese firms that they may lose out on lucrative oil contracts for failing to support the rebellion.

Gaddafi's fall will reopen the doors to Africa's largest oil reserves and give new players such as Qatar's national oil company and trading house Vitol the chance to compete with established European and U.S. oil majors.

"We don't have a problem with Western countries like the Italians, French and UK companies. But we may have some political issues with Russia, China and Brazil," Abdeljalil Mayouf, information manager at Libyan rebel oil firm AGOCO, told Reuters.

The comment signals a potential setback for those countries which opposed tough sanctions on Gaddafi or pressed for more talks and would leave European and U.S. companies to capture billions of dollars worth of oil exploration and construction contracts in the OPEC member nation.

Shares in Eni , top producer in pre-war Libya, gained as much as 7 percent, as its chairman Giuseppe Recchi said Libyan oil and gas flows could restart before winter. Brent oil futures LCOc1 fell just over a dollar a barrel on the anticipated resumption of Libyan exports

Shares in Austria's OMV and France's Total also rose by 3-5 percent and U.S. oil and oil services firms with operations in Libya followed the trend.

Italy's Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said staff from Eni had arrived to look into a restart of oil facilities in the country's east.

"The facilities had been made by Italians, by (oilfield services group) Saipem , and therefore it is clear that Eni will play a No. 1 role in the future," Frattini told state television RAI.

Before the war, Libya produced about 2 percent of global oil output or 1.6 million barrels per day and has reserves to sustain that level of production for 80 years.

A Reuters poll forecast it would take up to a year to restore Libyan output to at least 1 million bpd and up to two years to get back to pre-war levels.

"It will probably take weeks before we see exports again and it (Libya) also needs to feed the refineries. But nonetheless we need to add Libya back to OPEC spare capacity now," said analyst Olivier Jakob from Petromatrix.

Libya's former top oil official Shokri Ghanem, who defected from the government of Gaddafi in May, told Reuters some Libyan oil output would restart in a few months but it would take up to 18 months to return to pre-war levels.

AGOCO said that it was technically ready to start oil output in its two eastern fields, with capacity of 250,000 bpd.

"We have Libyan oil companies and can start anytime if security is approved. We can start without the foreign companies," said Mayouf.

He added that security forces hired from the former Libyan army were already present at the fields and the firm was waiting for their clearance to start production.

LOSERS AND WINNERS

About 75 Chinese companies operated in Libya before the war, involving about 36,000 staff and 50 projects, according to Chinese media.

Russian companies, including oil firms Gazprom Neft and Tatneft , also had projects worth billions of dollars in Libya. Brazilian firms such as Petrobras and construction company Odebrecht were also in business there.

"We have lost Libya completely," Aram Shegunts, director general of the Russia-Libya Business Council, told Reuters. "Our companies will lose everything there because NATO will prevent them from doing their business in Libya."

Apart from Italian officials, other European politicians and oil companies were more reserved in comments on Libya.

"At the moment we are not holding any bilateral talks with the (National) Transitional Council," OMV said.

Wintershall said restarting production could be done within several weeks: "This of course depends on the state of the export infrastructure as well as a stable security situation in the country," it said.

Analysts and industry observers have said Eni and Total could emerge as the big winners in post-war Libya due to their countries' heavy support for the rebels.

Big support from Qatar as well as oil trader Vitol, neither producers in Libya before the war, may also guarantee a chunk of reserves and influence goes to new players.

"Qatar will be a big player. Vitol might be an important one. Shell (RDSa.L) is also looking to boost its role," said a Western risk consultant with knowledge of negotiations. Shell and Vitol declined to comment.

Most global oil majors have taken a much more cautious approach to events in Libya. BP , which did not have production in Libya before the war, said it was planning to return to explore but gave no timeframe.

U.S. companies such as Marathon , ConocoPhillips , Hess , Occidental pulled out of Libya at the start of the year and have had little direct involvement in the events there since then.

"We have no intention of returning to Libya at the moment, as we don't know what's going on," ConocoPhillips spokesman John McLemore told Reuters. "We are not in contact with the rebels or the Gaddafi people."

"We are abiding by the (United Nations) sanctions and if or when they are lifted we will decide what to do." (Additional reporting by Svetlana Kovalyova, Sarah Young, Gus Trompiz, Mathilde Cru, Vladimir Soldatkin, Vera Eckert, Emma Farge, Silvia Westall, Ernest Scheyder, Steve James, Writing by Dmitry Zhdannikov, editing Richard Mably)

 

[CardSharp]

You want to know the official position of the PRC? From the Global times



Li: There is no way Gaddafi can be described as our friend. It was Gaddafi who blamed China for implementing "new colonialism" in Africa and persuaded other heads of African counties not to attend the 2006 China-Africa Forum in Beijing.

He also excluded China from investing in the Libyan gas and oil. Libya is the only African country that Chen?Shui-bian, the former Taiwanese leader and a separatist, has paid a visit to. Gaddafi is not China’s friend.

In fact, we anticipated the situation well and made instant changes on our policy toward the country. We have been in touch with the Libyan National Transition Council (NTC) since the end of May and consider it to be one of the legal representatives of the nation. I don’t think we are on the back foot on this issue.

PO: China evacuated more than 30,000 Chinese nationals from Libya after the civil war broke out. It is clear that China has invested a lot in Libya. Can we protect these interests?

Li: Our country didn’t really have too much investment in Libya, since Gaddafi gave his oil interests to the Western countries and he didn’t allow China to invest in its oil and gas fields. China’s interests in Libya are mostly contracts for infrastructure projects, amounting to more than $10 billion. When the Libyan civil war broke out, the amount of money owed on finished projects was only about $1 billion.

When the post-Gaddafi era comes, Libya will restore itself. The rebels also promised to protect China’s economic interests in Libya. There are many opportunities for China.

ENI leads Libya oil race; Russia, China may lose out

We'll see, the TNC coming power is an opportunity not a loss.

 

[TARIQ BN ZIYAAD]

qaddahfi was a murderer so as bashar one is gone the other will follow soon

PUBLIC WILL STAY

TARIQ

 

[cyphercide]

No surprises there.Notice how quickly Western nations are unfreezing Libyan assets held by them.Is it also a coincidence that during all this period of turmoil,sale of oil to the West was uninterrupted?

 

[Desert Fox]

@FaujHistorian Those rebels are nothing but Al-Qaida terrorists. I wouldn't be surprised if these "rebels" turn Libya into another Somalia!

 

[razgriz19]

No surprises there.Notice how quickly Western nations are unfreezing Libyan assets held by them.Is it also a coincidence that during all this period of turmoil,sale of oil to the West was uninterrupted?

ofcourse, west did that whole drama about "democracy" for OIL. thats why China, India, and Russia are now at stake as they didn't oppose Qaddafi regime...
England, who is cutting back on almost everything, but still was at war. WHY? OIL
so ya im with u, Its No surprise!

 

[Mech]

Well, India deserves the cold shoulder really. When you need to act, you need to act. Not go round in circles and "procrastinating". We cannot please everyone and we shouldn't be following this "half ***"-ed foreign policy anymore.

 

[cyphercide]

Well, India deserves the cold shoulder really. When you need to act, you need to act. Not go round in circles and "procrastinating". We cannot please everyone and we shouldn't be following this "half ***"-ed foreign policy anymore.

NATO shouldn't get to decide the fate of any country.What right do they have to bomb a foreign country.Who knows how many innocents might've been at the receiving end of those aerials raids.India,China and Russia did right by abstaining.Unfortunately for that very rationale,the West wants to cut us off.