SHENZHEN: Premier Wen Jiabao and his Australian counterpart John Howard
yesterday jointly inaugurated the first liquefied natural gas (LNG) project
between the two countries in South China's Guangdong Province.
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Premier Wen Jiabao and Australian
Prime Minister John Howard jointly press a button to start the Guangdong
Liquefied Natural Gas Project Phase I during a ceremony in Shenzhen's
Dapeng Bay yesterday. [REUTERS]
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Both
hailed the 25-year contract to supply a Shenzhen terminal with gas from
Australia as a symbol of blossoming trade between the countries.
The two leaders pushed the start-up button together during a ceremony at
Dapeng Gas Terminal in the bustling manufacturing hub of Shenzhen.
"Not only is this deal the biggest ever in Australia's history, it is in
every sense a symbol of what can be achieved in the future between our two
countries," said Howard.
The 29-billion-yuan (US$3.6 billion) terminal was built to receive LNG
shipments from Australia - part of a US$18.3 billion 25-year gas contract
finalized in late 2004.
Wen said the deal "marked a very big, very good beginning to stable,
long-term supply-and-demand relations" between the two countries.
The deal is Australia's single biggest resource contract and is China's first
LNG-import project. Deliveries began a month ago.
The Shenzhen facility, operated by China National Offshore Oil Corp, is the
first of 16 planned terminals in coastal area for receiving LNG.
The plants convert the fuel from liquid into gas form, which is then piped to
consumers, industries and power plants.
Under the contract, Australia will provide 3.7 million tons of LNG annually,
which will supply cities of Shenzhen, Dongguan, Guangzhou, Foshan and Huizhou in
Guangdong, and Hong Kong.
A senior Chinese official said the two nations were already in talks over
supplies for Guangdong's second LNG terminal.
China-Australia exchanges and collaboration have become more active than ever
before, Wen said.
"We are willing to continue high-level exchanges with Australia, enhance
strategic dialogue, and actively promote free trade negotiations," he said.
Beijing and Canberra are now discussing a free trade agreement and in April,
Wen announced that the two countries had agreed to strive for a deal within the
next two years.
Howard told reporters in Shenzhen on Tuesday that free trade negotiations
with Beijing are "going quite well" but the two nations would remain close
economic partners even if a formal deal isn't struck.
"I am on the optimistic side but... whether we sign a free trade agreement
with China or not, we have a super-duper economic relationship with this
country.
"The world has much to benefit from a fully and openly engaged China and we
welcome without any trepidation the economic involvement of China in the globe,"
Howard said.
Wen said China was ready to expand partnership with Australia in the energy
sector.
"China and Australia want to strengthen co-operation ranging from the energy,
mining and resources sectors to upstream exploration, new energy, renewable
energy, clean energy and safe production."
Howard assured his Chinese host that Australia would be a reliable supplier
of the energy China needs to fuel growth.
"Australia is a stable, reliable, competitive supplier of energy. We deliver
our commodities on time, we deliver them safely, we deliver them according to
the agreed price," Howard said.
Trade is likely to expand to more than US$30 billion this year from US$27
billion last year, Wen said.
China is already Australia's No 2 trading partner. The two sides recently
signed a nuclear safeguards deal that set the stage for huge uranium exports to
Beijing.
Howard is on a three-day working visit that started on Tuesday.
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