About a week ago, Imperial Oil signaled that all was not stalled in Canada's oil sands. Yesterday, a fresh face joined the fray.
PetroChina
This is hardly China's first brush with bitumen. Back in 2005, CNOOC
It will be interesting to see whether the Canadian government clears this deal. Like the Unocal flap here in the United States, in which CNOOC was rebuffed and Chevron
With Mexican production looking perilous, Canada will likely become an increasingly important source of incremental crude supply for the United States. I wouldn't be surprised if Alberta receives some sharply worded phone calls from area code 202 (Washington).
As for the Chinese, this move follows a series of similar pushes into regions ranging from West Africa to the Middle East. The country is taking energy security matters very seriously and is systematically strengthening its import supply by the day.