THE
Chinese and Indian state oil
companies are joining forces to
bid for a stake in Al Furat, a
joint venture company that
produces half of Syria’s oil
output, that could be worth as
much as $1 billion (£560
million) .
Oil and Natural Gas
Corporation (ONGC) is teaming up
with China National Petroleum
Corporation (CNPC) to buy
PetroCanada’s 38 per cent
interest in Al Furat, which is
controlled by Royal Dutch Shell
and the state-owned Syrian
Petroleum Company. The two
companies have previously been
keen rivals, bidding
aggressively for oil assets such
as PetroKazakhstan, a Canadian
exploration group with extensive
interests in Central Asia, which
was snapped up by CNPC in a $4.2
billion takeover in August.
Syria is a minor oil producer
compared with Iraq, and the Al
Furat venture pumps 180,000
barrels per day of oil plus gas
from 220 wells near Deir ez Zor,
about 550km northeast of
Damascus.
ONGC has stepped up its
campaign to secure access to
foreign oil resources. The
Indian company has so far
trailed its Chinese rival but
both companies are struggling to
acquire oil-producing acreage in
an overheated oil market.
Chinese oil companies have
made inroads in politically
sensitive countries, such as
Syria. CNPC has extensive
interests in Sudan, a relatively
new oil producer with
considerable potential that has
been shunned by the West,
fearful of a political backlash.
