OTTAWA - Ottawa has given its blessing to the sale of properties! U$ J/ v P/ n# a+ Q* C
owned by Athabasca Oil Sands Corp. to a Chinese company. 1 f& a/ z) l- k. J+ M0 m0 | Federal Industry Minister Tony Clement says he has reviewed the 6 ? U' M8 _+ z" F) ~# zdeal between Athabasca and PetroChina International Investment Co. 8 Z8 D, C8 T$ _9 k: s4 Q- }) O5 MLtd. and finds its is likely to be of net benefit to Canada.8 i0 { b+ w7 {1 M5 V
Clement says PetroChina and its parent, PetroChina Co. Ltd., have4 d: o8 }8 K$ [6 K0 N9 {4 B' k
made a number of significant commitments should they be allowed to 2 a* {+ ?& O+ L3 tacquire control of the MacKay and Dover oil sands projects. 2 f" _& H/ ?( C: N' q! I5 c" u Among other things, the Chinese concerns have agreed to capital 6 g n" n+ |3 w1 mexpenditures in excess of $250 million for developing the properties6 A+ p7 P: E: L5 Q# u+ ~2 R7 y2 l1 ]7 `
over the next three years. ' o3 \9 P: w) C1 N5 h/ L: n They have also pledged to increase employment levels in Canada as + B) S' t: y# J. d# j* [they develop the projects over the next three years and to maintain . ^! k1 o; h! \# B0 i+ qan Alberta head office for operating companies associated with the 5 A+ C, y) E; m% [% [5 `# sprojects for the next five years. 2 L ?0 V4 j3 I7 P; O7 h" { (The Canadian Press)