GoneWithTheWind
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Here is how international media comments on China's failure of oil/gas strategy.
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FT.com
Lex: China oil and gas
Wednesday October 8, 4:45 pm ET
China's bid to secure overseas oil assets is looking sickly. Its acquisition spree is littered with failures, especially in strategic Kazakhstan. The international oil majors, which took supportive stakes when China listed its trio - PetroChina, Sinopec and CNOOC - are getting twitchy about the dearth of quid pro quos. Nor have the Chinese companies benefited from any favours from those partnerships. The majors have worked to block Chinese interests from entering projects, most seriously in the case of the potentially vast Kashagan field in Kazakhstan.
Can China still achieve its expansion ambitions? The three listed entities certainly have the cash: around $9bn in aggregate. Beijing has given them the mandate to go out and spend it. While government ownership is a handicap to international expansion (the listed arms only constitute a small part of the whole), Malaysia's Petronas shows it need not be a deterrent.
Although China's demand for oil is voracious - a dizzying 5.6m barrels a day, 2m of which is imported - and there are security advantages in owning oil reserves, it should be wary of buying into projects for the sake of it. Some projects, particularly in Indonesia where the government makes a big tax grab, can be poor investments. Greenfield projects are also out. China lacks the management resources and operating expertise. A consortium approach, with Asian partners, is one way of developing assets. Offering market access in return for stakes is another way forward. But China will have to move quickly to stay in the game.
Philips Electronics would struggle to claim that superior operating skills have driven its 28 per cent outperformance of General Electric over the last decade. But the Dutch conglomerate can point to a strong record in trading businesses. For example, it sold down stakes in JDS Uniphase, the optical components group, and semiconductor equipment maker ASML when they were still riding high during the technology boom, instead strengthening its more solid medical systems business.
Yesterday's decision to offload a chunk of Taiwan Semiconductor also looks shrewd. The shares have risen by 76 per cent since the beginning of the year as hopes of a rebound have gathered pace. Philips' 21.5 per cent stake in TSMC now accounts for about one quarter of its own market capitalisation - uncomfortably high for a business it does not control. Reducing its stake to 19.1 per cent will raise about EU1bn, locking in some profits from the semiconductor rebound, which still needs to be underpinned by further chip price rises. Philips' decision to convert the TSMC shares first into American depository shares also allows it to take advantage of their 15 per cent premium to the Taiwan-traded shares.
================================================================
FT.com
Lex: China oil and gas
Wednesday October 8, 4:45 pm ET
China's bid to secure overseas oil assets is looking sickly. Its acquisition spree is littered with failures, especially in strategic Kazakhstan. The international oil majors, which took supportive stakes when China listed its trio - PetroChina, Sinopec and CNOOC - are getting twitchy about the dearth of quid pro quos. Nor have the Chinese companies benefited from any favours from those partnerships. The majors have worked to block Chinese interests from entering projects, most seriously in the case of the potentially vast Kashagan field in Kazakhstan.
Can China still achieve its expansion ambitions? The three listed entities certainly have the cash: around $9bn in aggregate. Beijing has given them the mandate to go out and spend it. While government ownership is a handicap to international expansion (the listed arms only constitute a small part of the whole), Malaysia's Petronas shows it need not be a deterrent.
Although China's demand for oil is voracious - a dizzying 5.6m barrels a day, 2m of which is imported - and there are security advantages in owning oil reserves, it should be wary of buying into projects for the sake of it. Some projects, particularly in Indonesia where the government makes a big tax grab, can be poor investments. Greenfield projects are also out. China lacks the management resources and operating expertise. A consortium approach, with Asian partners, is one way of developing assets. Offering market access in return for stakes is another way forward. But China will have to move quickly to stay in the game.
Philips Electronics would struggle to claim that superior operating skills have driven its 28 per cent outperformance of General Electric over the last decade. But the Dutch conglomerate can point to a strong record in trading businesses. For example, it sold down stakes in JDS Uniphase, the optical components group, and semiconductor equipment maker ASML when they were still riding high during the technology boom, instead strengthening its more solid medical systems business.
Yesterday's decision to offload a chunk of Taiwan Semiconductor also looks shrewd. The shares have risen by 76 per cent since the beginning of the year as hopes of a rebound have gathered pace. Philips' 21.5 per cent stake in TSMC now accounts for about one quarter of its own market capitalisation - uncomfortably high for a business it does not control. Reducing its stake to 19.1 per cent will raise about EU1bn, locking in some profits from the semiconductor rebound, which still needs to be underpinned by further chip price rises. Philips' decision to convert the TSMC shares first into American depository shares also allows it to take advantage of their 15 per cent premium to the Taiwan-traded shares.
