BBC NEWS
Royal Dutch Shell has strengthened its ties in China with a 30-year deal to explore for natural gas in the country.
The Anglo-Dutch energy giant will partner China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) in the project.
The deal follow’s this week’s joint bid with PetroChina, owned by CNPC, for Australia’s Arrow Energy gas company.
Shell has been expanding its search for gas assets rapidly, and the deal secures the company a strong presence in resource-hungry China.
Under the agreement, which still needs clearance from the Beijing government, Shell and CNPC will initially search for gas in a 4,000 sq km area in the Sichuan province.