Chad has withdrawn the five exploration permits it issued China National Petroleum Company (CNPC). This follows an initial request to shutdown operation on refusal to pay a fine of $1.2 billion in compensation for breaching environmental standards.
Chad’s Minister of Oil and Petroleum, Djerassem Le Bemadjiel, last weekend, said the latest decision was geared towards avoiding further environmental degradation.
Le Bemadjiel also said the government will be pressing charges against CNPC for failing to pay the $1.2 billion fine.
The government has already filed a complaint at N’Djamena – the capital and largest city of Chad – against the Chinese company for “environmental degradation and endangering the lives of others,” Chadian government Secretary General, Abdoulaye Sabre Fadoul said.[eap_ad_2]
A second complaint will be filed this week at the International Arbitration Chamber of Paris, France. “Amicable negotiations are no longer possible. All efforts have been in vain,” he maintained.
The country has a history of difficult relation with Chinese firms operating in its country. In the past, Chad had closed CNPC operations twice over pricing issues. Workers in some Chinese companies have also protested on pay raise and working conditions.
Chad became an oil producing nation in 2003 with production at 176,000 bpd in 2005. Revenue from this sector has been used to beef up the nation’s security and provide social infrastructures. (VENTURES AFRICA)[eap_ad_3]
Chad withdraws exploration license from Chinese company
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