Oil on troubled waters; Vietnam's Conoco deal draws fire from China

Article Abstract:

Vietnam and China are using foreign petroleum companies to assert sovereignty claims by leasing exploration blocks that overlap in the South China Sea. China awarded US oil firm Crestone Energy the right to explore for oil in a concession located about 400 km southeast of Ho Chi Minh City in 1992. Through its Petro Vietnam monopoly, Vietnam leased two blocks that overlap in the same area to Conoco in Apr 1996. China strongly protested the action which was rejected by Vietnam. The dispute could have negative repercussions for Du Pont, Conoco's parent company, which has significant operations in China.

China, Chinese foreign relations, Discovery and exploration, Conoco Inc., Vietnamese foreign relations, South China Sea, Crestone Energy Corp.

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Where oil and water mix

Article Abstract:

Oil has come to dominate Vietnam's export market and may fuel its expansion and industrialization in the coming decade. Offshore reserves are subject to debate with China over jurisdiction and have proven less extensive than once thought, but still huge and valuable. The oil is difficult and expensive to extract, however, thanks to geology and geography, and some firms have abandoned wells. Three fields are now producing oil and could yield up to 150 million barrels annually by 2000, with more regions up for tender.

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Something's out there: Vietnam eyes the potential of its offshore gas

Article Abstract:

Natural gas is approaching commercial feasibility in Vietnam but realizing its potential will demand that government agencies work together better than they have to date. Vietsovpetro has for years burned off roughly $100 million of gas naturally as it extracts oil from the Bach Ho fields in the South China Sea. Other gas fields are turning up nearby. If several large fields are found in the next few years, a liquified natural gas plant producing for export would be feasible.

Offshore gas fields, Natural gas in submerged lands

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