Who is fooling whom in the scheming over oil and gas reserves?
On the face of it, the speculation that China could take over
US$50 billion worth of Nigeria's oil reserves currently
licensed to Western oil majors is on the outer reaches of political
fantasy. Although Western oil companies are privately dismissive
of China's tactics, the start-up of negotiations on the oil licences
has started to concentrate minds. If nothing else, it is a shrewd
negotiating gambit by President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua's government,
which has been besieged on all sides in domestic politics....
(This article contains approximately 2111 words)
