Oil Companies of China, the Philippines and Vietnam signed Agreement on South China Sea Cooperation
2005-03-15 00:00

Ambassador Wu Hongbo and others witnessing the signing of the Agreement

On 14 March 2005, representatives from national oil companies of China, the Philippines and Vietnam signed a Tripartite Agreement for Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking in the Agreement Area in the South China Sea in Manila.

House Speaker Jose De Venecia poses with representatives from the three companies

House Speaker Jose De Venecia, Secretary of Energy Vicente Perez, Under Secretary of Foreign Affairs Sonia Brady of the Philippines, Chinese Ambassador Wu Hongbo and Vietnamese Ambassador Dinh Tich witnessed the signing of the Agreement.

Philippine President Arroyo weclomes representatives from CNOOC

Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo met the delegates from three countries and spoke highly of the historic significance of the Agreement.

President Arroyo poses with representatives from the three companies

The following is the full text of the Joint Statement issued by the three companies:

CNOOC/ PETROVIETNAM/ PNOC

Joint Statement on the Signing of a Tripartite Agreement for Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking in The Agreement Area in the South China Sea

March 14, 2005

Makati Shangri-la Hotel

A Tripartite Agreement for Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking in The Agreement Area in the South Sea was signed on the 14th March 2005 in Manila, Philippines, by and among China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), Vietnam Oil and Gas Corporation (PETROVIETNAM), and the Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC).

By signing this Agreement, the three parties expressed their desire to engage in a joint research of petroleum re resource potential in the Agreement Area as a pre-exploration activity. The joint activities will be conducted in the Agreement Area in accordance with the seismic work programmes approved by the parties.

The term of the Agreement will be three (3) years. The joint activities will cover an area of about 143,000 square km which is defined by specific geographic coordinates.

The three parties affirm that the signing of the Tripartite Agreement will not undermine the basic positions held by their respective Governments on the South China Sea issue and will contribute to the transformation of the South China Sea into an area of peace, stability, cooperation, and development in accordance with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 2002 ASEAN-China Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.

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