Philippines-China oil search open to new partner
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Philippines-China oil search open to new partner
Posted: 6:43 AM | Sept. 17, 2004

Abigail L. Ho
Inquirer News Service

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THE RECENTLY signed agreement between government-owned Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC) and China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) for a joint study of the South China Sea area has left the door open for another national oil firm that may be interested in the $7.5-million project, PNOC president Eduardo Mañalac said.

The agreement, which was signed in China during President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's state visit there two weeks ago, has a provision that will allow another player to do the study with the Filipino and Chinese national oil firms, if such a firm would be interested, Mañalac said.


The terms for participation of a third oil firm should be mutually acceptable to PNOC and CNOOC, he said.

The government of Vietnam has said it is "very concerned" that the agreement had been signed without consulting other stakeholders in the issue.

Vietnam, China and Taiwan all claim the Spratly group of islands in the South China Sea, and Brunei, Malaysia and the Philippines claim portions of the group.

Mañalac said there were efforts through the Department of Foreign Affairs to get in touch with Vietnam's national oil firm PetroVietnam.

He said political claims would be set aside in the meantime that a study of the South China Sea area for potential petroleum resources was underway.

"We don't want to tinge it [the joint study] with any issue of claims," Mañalac said.

The agreement for the joint study "is not between governments but between two national oil companies," he said. "We want to encourage cooperation and this is a start." With INQ7.net

source: http://money.inq7.net/breakingnews/view_breakingnews.php?yyyy=2004&mon=09&dd=17&file=2