The only thing driving Canada’s oil and gas strategy is to sell the most amount in the shortest period of time to the highest bidder.

In the second decade of the 21st century accelerating demand is coming from China.

This is the background to the huge shift in Prime Minister Harper’s approach to China from human rights advocate to oil and gas salesman.

The combination of the refusal to permit the Keystone XL Pipeline and the noise about the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline has begun to raise public interest in the issue of the role of China in Canada’s oil and gas industry.

It comes none too soon.

A spade a spade.

china.org -- Oil exports to top agenda of Canadian PM's China visit
Increasing oil exports to China will be high on the agenda of Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper's upcoming visit to China next week, which will hopefully improve both countries energy security, analysts said.

Notable statistic.

“The Northern Gateway Pipeline, which may end at Kitamaat Village on the British Columbia coast in Canada, would be built to handle 220 tankers a year and 525,000 barrels of oil a day.”

Thoughts on the commercial ties between Canada and China in the oil and gas industry.

Asia Times -- Shale-gas deal sweetens Harper's Beijing trip
Chinese energy policy has increased its focus on commercial ties with Canada and the acquisition of technologies for exploration and development of unconventional natural gas in general and shale gas in particular.

 

Related.

Asia Pacific Foundation -- China's Renewed Interest in the Canadian Energy Sector
For nearly four years, from 2006 to 2009, China made no major investment in Canada, even though in this period China’s energy demand grew rapidly and Chinese energy firms invested heavily around the world. Yet, in the past two years, China has poured well over $16-billion of cash into Canada - and that is counting only the eight largest energy deals alone. What has changed?

Quote worth quoting.

“The Chinese have obviously concluded that their investment in Canada is good for China. But are Chinese investments good for Canada? The debate on this question in Canada seems to have just begun.’ -- Wenran Jiang is a political science professor at the University of Alberta

Related.

Asia Times -- China's cash floods into Canadian energy sector
As China has become the world's second-largest economy, its demand for energy has caused it to become the world's biggest comprehensive energy consumer. Accompanying this process has been a sharp upward trend in Chinese foreign direct investment (FDI) focused on energy and other resources.

Quote worth quoting.

“Should Canada pursue Chinese investment as a part of its diversification strategy away from the US market and, if yes, should Canada worry about the potential for Sino-US competition for Canadian oil? The question begs a response from Canada as much as from China and the United States. For Canada, the answer seems to be more of a market-oriented one than a strategic one.”

China has an energy strategy, does Canada? Thoughts on the strategic risk of wedding Canada’s energy to China’s energy strategy. Thanks to Ken of Tokyo/Hong Kong.

Ottawa Citizen -- Defenceless
 Canada has no idea what foreign activity is detrimental to its national security interests, much less how to stop it.

Quote worth quoting.

“The big prize in the Conoco Phillips stake was the veto the deal gave Sinopec over any Syncrude decision to keep the jobs and investment benefits of upgrading and refining its bitumen here in Canada.”

Series on the oil sands with a bit of China thrown in.

The Tyee -- Oil Sands: Canada's 10 Ethical Challenges
Canada has joined the ranks of exporting oil nations and now supplies more petroleum to the United States than Mexico or Saudi Arabia.

 

The Tyee -- Two More Ethical Challenges to Canada's Oil Sands
Listing the limitations to bitumen boosting.

 

The Tyee -- China, and Two More Ethical Challenges to Oil Sands
In two previous articles, I detailed seven of 10 ethical challenges Canada faces given the way it is exploiting the oil sands.

Why the Chinese are investing in oil in Africa.

Pdf below -- The Geopolitics of Chinese Oil Investment in Africa

The great game.

ISN -- Colliding Geopolitics and African Resources
Is Africa the object of a new Great Game among natural resource imperialists or does the continent offer opportunities for cooperation between global and local stakeholders?

 

Institute for the Analysis of Global Security -- Fueling the dragon: China's race into the oil market
China's expectation of growing future dependence on oil imports has brought it to acquire interests in exploration and production in places like Kazakhstan, Russia, Venezuela, Sudan, West Africa, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Canada.

Basic Data

EIA – Canada Energy Data

 

Pdf below -- Oil and Gas Security Canada 2010

 

Canada-Chinese Trade, 2010-2011