Prime Minister Hun Sen (left) shakes hands Monday with French Foreign Affairs Minister Bernard Kouchner at the Quai d’Orsay in Paris. AFPTotal awarded energy concession, says govt
Wednesday, 15 July 2009
Kay Kimsong
The Phnom Penh Post
Announcement during Hun Sen’s official government visit follows years of negotiations with French oil company
CAMBODIA has awarded French oil giant Total the rights to a contested drilling area in the Gulf of Thailand.
The announcement was contained in a press release dated July 14 - Bastille Day - from Prime Minister Hun Sen's Cabinet during his official visit to France.
The statement was confirmed to the Post by Prak Sokhon, secretary of state for the Council of Ministers, who is in France with Hun Sen.
Both Thailand and Cambodia claim a 27,000 square kilometre swath of the seabed, which is thought to be rich in oil and gas deposits.
The area in the press statement that has been awarded to Total is referred to as Block III.
In the statement, Hun Sen said the decision to award the concession was made after proper overview of bidding documents, adding that he welcomed the presence of any French companies wishing to invest in Cambodia, a former French colony.
The news was a surprise to Total's leading upstream executive in Cambodia, Jean-Pierre Labbe.
Last week he told the Post that Total had been negotiating with Phnom Penh for several years and in 2008 submitted an official request for concessions.
Contacted by phone on Tuesday, Labbe said he had not heard an official response from the government on the bid.
"I don't know. We knew the Cambodian Prime Minister [Hun Sen] is visiting France, but we have no feedback from Paris," he said.
A source at the Council of Ministers, who asked not to be named, said it was likely that Total's bid had come up in discussions in Paris, but was unable to provide detailed information and referred all questions to the prime minister's Cabinet.
Hun Sen is accompanied on his trip by Foreign Minister Hor Namhong.
The director general of the Cambodian National Petroleum Authority (CNPA), Te Duong Tara, hung up when called about the issue, saying he was too busy to comment.
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner reportedly welcomed the announcement.
Multiple concessions
Stephane Dion, managing director of Total Cambodge, told the Post during an interview last week that the firm was in ongoing discussions with Phnom Penh on offshore and onshore concessions for oil and gas exploration.
"[There are] at two different projects that we are interested in," he said at the time.
Minister Hun Sen left on Thursday for a five-day visit to France at the invitation of President Nicolas Sarkozy.
The trip was aimed at boosting ties between the two countries. "This visit is to strengthen cooperation between Cambodia and France," said Koy Kuong, a spokesman for Cambodia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY STEVE FINCH
CAMBODIA has awarded French oil giant Total the rights to a contested drilling area in the Gulf of Thailand.
The announcement was contained in a press release dated July 14 - Bastille Day - from Prime Minister Hun Sen's Cabinet during his official visit to France.
The statement was confirmed to the Post by Prak Sokhon, secretary of state for the Council of Ministers, who is in France with Hun Sen.
Both Thailand and Cambodia claim a 27,000 square kilometre swath of the seabed, which is thought to be rich in oil and gas deposits.
The area in the press statement that has been awarded to Total is referred to as Block III.
In the statement, Hun Sen said the decision to award the concession was made after proper overview of bidding documents, adding that he welcomed the presence of any French companies wishing to invest in Cambodia, a former French colony.
The news was a surprise to Total's leading upstream executive in Cambodia, Jean-Pierre Labbe.
Last week he told the Post that Total had been negotiating with Phnom Penh for several years and in 2008 submitted an official request for concessions.
Contacted by phone on Tuesday, Labbe said he had not heard an official response from the government on the bid.
"I don't know. We knew the Cambodian Prime Minister [Hun Sen] is visiting France, but we have no feedback from Paris," he said.
A source at the Council of Ministers, who asked not to be named, said it was likely that Total's bid had come up in discussions in Paris, but was unable to provide detailed information and referred all questions to the prime minister's Cabinet.
Hun Sen is accompanied on his trip by Foreign Minister Hor Namhong.
The director general of the Cambodian National Petroleum Authority (CNPA), Te Duong Tara, hung up when called about the issue, saying he was too busy to comment.
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner reportedly welcomed the announcement.
Multiple concessions
Stephane Dion, managing director of Total Cambodge, told the Post during an interview last week that the firm was in ongoing discussions with Phnom Penh on offshore and onshore concessions for oil and gas exploration.
"[There are] at two different projects that we are interested in," he said at the time.
Minister Hun Sen left on Thursday for a five-day visit to France at the invitation of President Nicolas Sarkozy.
The trip was aimed at boosting ties between the two countries. "This visit is to strengthen cooperation between Cambodia and France," said Koy Kuong, a spokesman for Cambodia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY STEVE FINCH
22 comments:
Happy that France got the concession. A lot better that we leave it to Thailand! The Frenchs know that the seabed belongs to Cambodia. They know the 1908 demarcating map between Cambodia and Thailand. It's also good to have a friend of this size with us! On top of it, Total is a giant in the field. They have money, technology and they are already present in Cambodia. Good deal!
Prestige for petrol.
The one eyed hyena is not dimwitted.
Vive la France !
We hope that France will not cede that territorial maritime concession to the vietnamese again when she finish the oil field exploitation.
Do we forget the Cochinchine commercial concession ? should-we ?
Corruption is rampant under Hun Xen.
Do oil money go to the Khmer Nation building or to the CPP elite? To the CPP Elite is the fact.
CPP Elite is 1% of the population but they take 99% of the nation's wealth. We need PEOPLE POWER this logic.
Khmer Angkor
Democratic Kampuchea Pol Pot Khmer Rouge Regime had committed:
Tortures
Executions
Massacres
Atrocities
Crimes Against Humanity
Starvations
Overwork to Death
Slavery
Rapes
Human Abuses
Assault and Battery
Cambodian People's Party Hun Sen Khmer Rouge Regime had committed:
Assassinations
Assassinate Journalists
Assassinate Political Opponents
Murders
Killings
Extrajudicial Execution
Grenade Attack
Terrorism
Drive by Shooting
Tortures
Intimidations
Death Threats
Threatening
Human Abductions
Human Rights Abuses
Human Trafficking
Drugs Trafficking
Under Age Child Sex
Corruptions
Bribery
Illegal Mass Evictions
Illegal Land Grabbing
Illegal Firearms
Illegal Logging
Illegal Deforestation
Illegally use of remote detonation on Sokha Helicopter, while Hok Lundy and others military official on board.
Illegally Sold State Properties
Illegally Remove Parliamentary Immunity of Parliament Members
Plunder National Resources
Acid Attacks
Turn Cambodia into a Lawless Country
Oppression
Injustice
Steal Votes
Bring Foreigners from Veitnam to vote in Cambodia for Cambodian People's Party.
Abuse the Court as a tools for CPP to send political opponents and journalists to jail.
Abuse of Power
Abuse the Laws
Abuse the National Election Committee
Abuse the National Assembly
Violate the Laws
Violate the Constitution
Violate the Paris Accords
Impunity
Under Cambodian People's Party Hun Sen Khmer Rouge Regime, no criminals that has been committed all of these crimes above within Hun Sen Khmer Rouge government have ever been brought to justice.
The dog Hun Xen met with france because of petrol in Cambodia.
Stop talking and accusing. Tired to read your comments.
All of you will not better then Mr. Hun Sen. You will do the same thing.
check out the article in ka_set
this shackhand caused khmer with peace and tied with oil field and khmer thai border . france had bean help and defend khmer teritory and also prevent thai aggresive to cambodia . if that time had no france helping .khmer will fallen with thai and Yuon .
Should Khmer people must laugh or cry to that news
yuon, thai, french, china, they are all hyena, although, I support idea of oil being exploited by french than by yuons, thai or chine, worse criminals on earth
french should not only fight to exploit oil but should have some dignity and responsibility to promote life conditions of poor people, democracy and humain rights in Cambodia.
Strategically,it is a job well done. Thank you for our PM in achieving this economic revenue.
Leaving to change in management of govt,both in public sector and private sector will help cambodians who have been disadvantaged economically.
Neang SA
4:52
Bullshit!
One eyed hyena has done well to fill his pockets. Total the french oil giant is known to have paid hundreds of millions of dollars to corrupt officials for exploration rights.Once again when it comes to stealing cambodian natural resources he has done well.
As reported by Ka-set, it seems the french are interested in oil but would prefer not to be seen too close to a former KR assasin and present day dictator of cambodia.
1:20AM, your comment is too long and one gonna read yours.
So please make it shorter, just for a few words is enough for everyone.
Thank You !!!!!
vivre la france and cambodge. khmer/french friendship forever! please come invest in my country from france. welcome to cambodia. god bless france and cambodia together.
we need france's assistance and technology. god bless cambodia.
Well done my super PM Hun Sen....see!! those guy are jealouse with you, except for good and construtive commentators, beside that they are SRP slave, they always don't want to see Cambodia developped, they always underestimate what will happend in future with no clear foundation... do you notice the way they say same as stupid Mr. Sam Run Sy does, as same as other SRP do; they never use tehir own brain to express, what their leader say, they quote 100% even his characture!!!
Khmer
the USA should invite cambodia for official visit as well. this will help to clear any misunderstanding or judgment, etc. from america, and may even opening up a new chapter in khmer/american relations and new superfriendship and so forth. can't wait for the USA to invite cambodia for official visit as well. god bless the USA and cambodia.
VIVE LA FRANCE - VIVE LE CAMBODGE
Come on you cambodian "uncle toms" colonialism is dead and gone.
Anyone doing business with hun sen is just another crook like hanoi or thai!
i think france is smart by courting cambodia. khmer/french friendship forever.
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