China gets Nigerian oil rights

LAGOS – Nigeria handed a state-owned Chinese group licences to explore four oil blocks on Friday.

The allocation to China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) of four of 17 blocks up for auction in Lagos, infuriated Niger Delta militants. They have denounced the move as a “bribe”.

The CNPC won the auction for two blocks located in the north eastern Lake Chad Basin and two in the southern Niger Delta, the country’s main oil-producing region.

The rights in the Lake Chad basin blocks went for $510 000 each. The two in the Niger Delta were sold for $5.01m and $10.01m respectively.

AFP