Liquefied natural gas (LNG) sale and purchase agreements between
China and Australia were signed Friday in Canberra.
The agreements worth US$13.75 billion is the biggest in Australia's
history of business.
According to the agreements, the North West Shelf Venture of
Australia will sell 3.3 million tons of LND a year for 25 years
starting from 2005 to China's Guangdong Province.
Australian Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane attended the signing
ceremony on behalf of Prime Minister John Howard who is in Bali.
Macfarlane hailed the event as a clear proof of the mature
relationships between Australia and China.
The minister announced a 25 million Australian dollars (US$14
million) Australia Gas Technology Partnership Fund to boost the
China's energy relationship with Australia. "It demonstrates our
desire for a long-term partnership between China and Australia on
energy," he said.
Zhang Guobao, deputy chairman of the Chinese government's planning
committee said the future of cooperation between China and
Australia in the energy resources field is bright. The Chinese
government has decided to largely expand the energy sector while
Australia possesses rich resource of gas, he added.
(Xinhua News
Agency October 18, 2002)