Latin America and China’s Transnationalizing Oil Industry: A Political Economy Assessment of New Relations

Abstract

Chinese oil companies have recently started to set up operations in Latin America, and they are doing this at a rapid pace. This article aims to provide an overview of the increasing flows of oil and capital (fdi and credit) between Latin America and China, and to clarify how they interact with the broader Sino-Latin American relations as well as Latin America's changing political landscape. In addition to regional trends, the cases of Venezuela, Brazil and Ecuador are discussed. The article combines an assessment of factual data with an analysis of the broader political economy context in which these new oil relations operate. Next to national differences, three general tendencies stand out: first, the type of arrangements and coordinated activities that Chinese companies, banks and government agencies deploy differ from those of other large oil-seeking nations; second, while the arrival of Chinese capital is welcomed by Latin American governments and pictured as part of non-imperialist South-South relations, Chinese oil companies and loans are sometimes criticized in local media by scholars, opposition and ng os; and third, Chinese oil imports and investments have added to changing atti tudes and policies towards strategic sectors under new political regimes, which allows for more social spending but which critics have labeled as the return to an 'extractivist model.'

Çi̇n’i̇n Merkanti̇li̇st Enerji̇ Poli̇ti̇kalari Ve Lati̇n Ameri̇ka’daki̇ Yansimalari

“…Çin'in dev enerji şirketleri CNPC, CNOOC ve SINOPEC, küreselleşme politikasının önemli aparatları olarak Latin Amerika'daki en büyük yatırımcılar arasındadır. Son yıllarda hem yatırım miktarı hem de anlaşma sayısı bağlamında Çin petrol şirketleri Latin Amerika'daki faaliyetlerini artırdı (Jenkins, 2012;Hogenboom, 2014;Gallagher, 2016: 53). Bunun en büyük nedeni, yukarıda da belirtildiği üzere Çin'in artan enerji ihtiyacıdır.…”

Geopolitical Economy of Energy and Environment

“…In addition to investments in Peru, Venezuela, Ecuador, and Colombia, Sinopec is investing in Brazil and CNOOC in Argentina. Much of this oil does not reach China but is sold to the US (Hoogenboom 2014). Investments in Latin America run contextual risks because of social protests and political instability (Hongbo 2014;Hoogenboom 2014).…”

China’s South–South Cooperation with Latin America and the Caribbean

“…As a 2013 report by ECLAC on Chinese foreign direct investment in Latin America and the Caribbean has noted, "most Chinese direct investments in the region date only from 2010, and many of them have encountered implementation problems due to the great differences in business environments between the two regions" (ECLAC, 2013: 17). This report also indicates that while "Chinese companies have invested heavily in oil and mining extraction in Latin America they are not the largest transnational corporations in the region, nor do they dominate any particular industry or country" (ECLAC, 2013: 14; see also Hogenboom, 2014).…”