OTTAWA - Ottawa has given its blessing to the sale of properties 0 u+ r' u, U/ G9 T: T6 m/ `& howned by Athabasca Oil Sands Corp. to a Chinese company.& A; Y8 w; {" u2 l: k
Federal Industry Minister Tony Clement says he has reviewed the. v; Q2 t+ b$ w' t3 u0 F
deal between Athabasca and PetroChina International Investment Co. 9 J7 l% B* B3 z& aLtd. and finds its is likely to be of net benefit to Canada. - V9 w3 u# e- {+ ^ Clement says PetroChina and its parent, PetroChina Co. Ltd., have3 {* x( J1 F8 Y4 a8 H( t; @) S! W
made a number of significant commitments should they be allowed to * U0 I8 x5 b# B. t* T1 b& l% pacquire control of the MacKay and Dover oil sands projects.2 [$ Q. ^! W' z m. n
Among other things, the Chinese concerns have agreed to capital " x! B! _) j0 }& l texpenditures in excess of $250 million for developing the properties 0 `% E8 @1 ]) i3 d oover the next three years. 7 i3 b. p0 K+ S They have also pledged to increase employment levels in Canada as & I" r/ S* T2 I# w3 _they develop the projects over the next three years and to maintain E7 K7 N0 z: \$ y4 j) w- [an Alberta head office for operating companies associated with the 1 ^ x0 R7 ?8 Q1 q: Y5 [6 `; I9 iprojects for the next five years. * Q* ~6 s' {- v; U0 J (The Canadian Press)