China, Iran sign valuable oil & gas contract
China's oil giant Sinopec Group has signed a $70 billion worth oil and natural gas deal with Iran; China's biggest energy deal with the No. 2 OPEC producer.
Under a memorandum of understanding signed on Thursday, Iran agreed to sell Sinopec Group 250 million tons of liquefied natural gas over 30 years.
Iran also agreed on selling 150,000 barrels per day of crude oil to China for 25 years at market prices after commissioning of the field.
In his two-day visit to Beijing, Iran's oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh said that Iran is China's biggest oil supplier and wants to be its long-term business partner.
China has imported 226 million tons of oil in 2003, about 13 percent of which coming from Iran, according to official figures.
Beijing expects to secure foreign energy supplies by the deals for its economy, which has turned China into a major oil importer yet suffers serious power shortages.
