Page 12 - AsianOil Week 49 2022

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China, Saudi Arabia to expand energy research

POLICY RIYADH-BASED think-tank, The King Abdul- “Research is fundamentally collaborative,
lah Petroleum Studies and Research Center and I look forward to driving deeper tangi-
China and Saudi Arabia (KAPSARC), has signed a memorandum of ble co-operation in research fellowships and
want to enhance understanding (MoU) with the Economics strengthening the collaboration on innovation
cooperation as a major & Technology Research Institute (ETRI), a and knowledge exchange between our two
oil buyer and major oil research institute linked with China’s state- institutions,” said KAPSARC’s vice president for
supplier respectively. owned oil firm CNPC, on greater co-operation knowledge and analysis, Fahad Alturki.
in energy research. The priorities will be research on energy pol-
“It’s a pleasure to reaffirm a partnership that icy, climate policy, climate change, the energy
has been strong and will continue to be strong. transition, energy efficiency and productivity,
This is a partnership that is an aspiration for the hydrogen, carbon capture and storage (CCS),
developing world as we enter a post-COVID and energy issues under the Belt and Road Ini-
and post-Paris Climate Agreement era,” KAP- tiative (BRI).
SARC president Fahad Alajlan commented. “As important energy producers and consum-
“We see a lot of common interest and alignment ers in the world, China and Saudi Arabia play an
between China’s and Saudi Arabia’s position important role in maintaining the stability of the
when it comes to energy and climate. We both international energy market, addressing climate
understand and reiterate the idea of common change and promoting the realisation of energy
but differentiated responsibility when it comes green transformation goals,” ETRI president Yu
to climate change.” Guo commented.
The two institutions will bolster their research The signing of the MoU comes ahead of an
under the agreement, including in the spheres of inaugural Chinese-Saudi summit planned to
energy, economics, technology, policy and envi- take place this month. “Ahead of President Xi
ronmental concerns. The two sides will hold Jinping’s return visit to Saudi Arabia later this
joint workshops, their experts will exchange week, this MoU will reinvigorate collaboration
ideas, and they will form international co-oper- between these two advisory think-tanks at a
ation and knowledge exchange platforms, and critical time for the world of energy,” said KAP-
undertake peer reviews of research and policy SARC’s director of strategic partnerships, Brian
papers. Efird. ™

NEWS IN BRIEF
Indications are oil tanker ‘traffic initially resisted providing such letters but gradually decrease its natural gas flows to
on December 10, Turkey sent out a sample
China, citing domestic consumption rising
jam’ in Turkish straits has letter to insurers that it stated would be at what could become a crisis-inducing rate.
deemed acceptable proof of insurance cover,
In June, Kazakh President Kassym-
started to clear according to a shipping official talked to by Jomart Tokayev ordered the government
to cut gas exports and ensure that an
Bloomberg and a port-agent report.
The ‘traffic jam’ of oil tankers waiting to The maritime authority’s tweet said there additional 2bn cubic metres (bcm) of
journey through Turkey’s essential shipping were 12 tankers awaiting passage that still gas were available to consumers inside
straits appeared to be clearing by December hadn’t submitted the correct letter. Kazakhstan. Tokayev, said meeting domestic
12. Since December 5, Russia has been demand for gas must be held as an absolute
Turkish authorities have held up tankers, confronted with a G7 $60 a barrel price cap priority over exports, with the gas to be
carrying mostly Kazakh but also Russian on its crude oil. Anyone paying above $60 sourced from the Tengiz field developed
oil, amid insurance doubts that Ankara says is disqualified from obtaining industry- by a consortium led by US energy giant
arose in relation to Ukraine war sanctions standard insurance for oil transit. Turkey Chevron.
imposed on Russia. But tankers able to argued it was unable to distinguish which
haul in excess of 15mn barrels of crude shipments were bought under the cap, As one of the world’s biggest importers
have navigated either the Bosphorus or unlocking industry-standard insurance, and of critical energy needs, China has
Dardanelles shipping straits since December which were not. always been keen to preserve its leading
10, according to tanker tracking data role in Kazakhstan's energy sector in
compiled by Bloomberg. Moreover, Turkish order to secure the lion's share of its
maritime authorities tweeted on December Gas crunch emerging in East as shipments. China’s growing engagement
11 that four tankers were scheduled to sail in the country’s energy sector resulted,
through the Bosphorus the next day. Kazakhstan fails to meet China’s for instance, in the acquisition of
Group of Seven (G7) sanctions on Russia PetroKazakhstan Inc, a Canadian-owned
sparked some confusion as to whether oil import requests company, by state-owned China National
tankers passing through Turkish waters Petroleum Corp (CNPC) for $4.18bn in
to the Eastern Mediterranean would be The global energy crisis that is so apparent 2005. Kazakhstan’s energy sector has,
insured against risks like collisions and in the West is now becoming that much however, avoided falling under Chinese
spills. Ankara demanded letters from each more visible in the East. Kazakhstan, one domination by commencing oil and gas
tanker to prove insurance coverage was of the leading crude oil and gas suppliers exports to Europe, mainly via Russian
in play for their oil shipments. Insurers in Asia, has announced that it intends to territory that provides a path to the export

P12 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 49 13•December•2022