A Chinese consortium would sign a joint-venture agreement with
petrochemical giant Sasol during Premier Wen Jiabao’s first
official visit to South Africa next week – and also commit to
establishing an artisan and engineering training centre in South
Africa, the Chinese Ambassador told a media briefing in Tshwane on
Wednesday.
The joint-venture agreement would see China and Sasol entering the second phase of a feasibility study into building two coal-to-liquid (CTL) plants in the Chinese provinces of Ninxia and Shaanxi, Ambassador Liu Guijin said at the Chinese Embassy in Pretoria, while also committing to the development of South African human resources through the creation of new technical training infrastructure.
He said that the two CLT plants, which would cost an estimated $5-billion each, would be the same size as Sasol’s Secunda plant, in Mpumalanga. The second phase of the feasibility study was expected to take some two years to complete.
Liu said that the two CTL plants in coal-rich China would diversify the country’s petroleum sources.
He said that China imported about 130-million tons of oil a year, compared to Japan’s 600-million tons a year and the US’s 600-million tons a year.
The consortium that would sign the agreement with Sasol formed part of a delegation comprising Wen, several ministers and businesspeople.
This delegation would visit South Africa on Wednesday and Thursday next week as part of the premier’s official visit to seven African countries, including Egypt, Ghana, Congo, Angola, Tanzania and Uganda.
During the two-day visit, China and South Africa would also sign a memorandum of understanding on cooperation that was aimed at deepening the strategic partnership between the two countries.
Liu explained that this agreement was a follow up on the Pretoria Declaration on partnership signed in 2004 and would cover the areas of politics, trade and economics and social development.
China-South Africa trade and economic cooperation had grown rapidly over the last few years, with some 20% of the China-Africa trade dedicated to South Africa, making it China’s largest African trading partner.
He said that China would commit itself to development by recognising the South African government’s Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative (Asgisa) – which aimed at realising 6% growth by 2010 and halving poverty by 2014 – as well as the programme which went hand-in-hand with Asgisa, namely the Joint Initiative on Priority Skills Acquisition.
China would pledge donations towards training and developing of skills and human resources in South Africa and it would also establish a training centre for artisans and engineers in South Africa.
Meanwhile, China and South Africa had also reached a draft agreement on restraining the exports of textiles to the South African market, in a bid to save the South Africa’s stricken textile industry. But, Liu drew attention to the fact that the South African textile sector enjoyed considerable tariff protection and that it would have to raise its competitiveness, as other countries, notably India, were poised to fill the market gaps from which China was already emerging.
Although a final agreement had not been reached, the Department of Trade and Industry and the Chinese government were making good progress, he disclosed.
The structure of China’s exports to South Africa was changing and the percentage of textile exports to South Africa was reducing, he said. Official data for January to April had shown that textile, garment and footwear exports to South Africa comprised only 10% of its overall exports to South Africa, down 20% from 30% in 2005.
Wen’s visit, which would entail two meetings with President Thabo Mbeki and several ministers and senior officials from both counties, would also spur two-way investment into both countries, said Liu.
This would built on the accumulated investment from China in South Africa, which reached $250-million at the end of last year, while paid-in investment from South Africa into China reached $350-million.
There would also be discussions around the peaceful use of nuclear energy as well as agriculture exports and imports.
The joint-venture agreement would see China and Sasol entering the second phase of a feasibility study into building two coal-to-liquid (CTL) plants in the Chinese provinces of Ninxia and Shaanxi, Ambassador Liu Guijin said at the Chinese Embassy in Pretoria, while also committing to the development of South African human resources through the creation of new technical training infrastructure.
He said that the two CLT plants, which would cost an estimated $5-billion each, would be the same size as Sasol’s Secunda plant, in Mpumalanga. The second phase of the feasibility study was expected to take some two years to complete.
Liu said that the two CTL plants in coal-rich China would diversify the country’s petroleum sources.
He said that China imported about 130-million tons of oil a year, compared to Japan’s 600-million tons a year and the US’s 600-million tons a year.
The consortium that would sign the agreement with Sasol formed part of a delegation comprising Wen, several ministers and businesspeople.
This delegation would visit South Africa on Wednesday and Thursday next week as part of the premier’s official visit to seven African countries, including Egypt, Ghana, Congo, Angola, Tanzania and Uganda.
During the two-day visit, China and South Africa would also sign a memorandum of understanding on cooperation that was aimed at deepening the strategic partnership between the two countries.
Liu explained that this agreement was a follow up on the Pretoria Declaration on partnership signed in 2004 and would cover the areas of politics, trade and economics and social development.
China-South Africa trade and economic cooperation had grown rapidly over the last few years, with some 20% of the China-Africa trade dedicated to South Africa, making it China’s largest African trading partner.
He said that China would commit itself to development by recognising the South African government’s Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative (Asgisa) – which aimed at realising 6% growth by 2010 and halving poverty by 2014 – as well as the programme which went hand-in-hand with Asgisa, namely the Joint Initiative on Priority Skills Acquisition.
China would pledge donations towards training and developing of skills and human resources in South Africa and it would also establish a training centre for artisans and engineers in South Africa.
Meanwhile, China and South Africa had also reached a draft agreement on restraining the exports of textiles to the South African market, in a bid to save the South Africa’s stricken textile industry. But, Liu drew attention to the fact that the South African textile sector enjoyed considerable tariff protection and that it would have to raise its competitiveness, as other countries, notably India, were poised to fill the market gaps from which China was already emerging.
Although a final agreement had not been reached, the Department of Trade and Industry and the Chinese government were making good progress, he disclosed.
The structure of China’s exports to South Africa was changing and the percentage of textile exports to South Africa was reducing, he said. Official data for January to April had shown that textile, garment and footwear exports to South Africa comprised only 10% of its overall exports to South Africa, down 20% from 30% in 2005.
Wen’s visit, which would entail two meetings with President Thabo Mbeki and several ministers and senior officials from both counties, would also spur two-way investment into both countries, said Liu.
This would built on the accumulated investment from China in South Africa, which reached $250-million at the end of last year, while paid-in investment from South Africa into China reached $350-million.
There would also be discussions around the peaceful use of nuclear energy as well as agriculture exports and imports.
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