Resourceful Decision-Making

"The Investment Canada Acts contains provisions to protect national security and the people of Canada can be sure that our government has done its job and makes good decisions in the interest of Canada."  John Baird, Foreign Affairs Minister

The government's review of the proposed Chinese $15.1-billion CONOOC takeover bid of Calgary-based Nexen has industry watchers and insiders on tenterhooks.  Particularly since the presentation of the very direct and detailed warning issued by SCIS security intelligence agency. 

While Nexen shareholders, looking to gain profitably from the handover, look to their own interests primarily, it is in the interests of Canadians that its government take into due and full consideration the fully nuanced reported concerns issued by CSIS, taking into account the full ramifications if an aggressive-entitled country like China gets its foot too far on the threshhold of desired energy resources it can become belligerently possessive of.

China has been front and centre particularly lately, over its disagreements with its neighbours around the South China Sea with respect to challenging their long-established territorial integrity, against China's determination to scoop up for itself as large an offshore entitlement as possible, with an eye toward future energy resources being plumbed from the depths of the oceans.

Canada took the initiative to refuse a takeover of satellite producer MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates several years back and a later attempt by Australia's BHP Billiton Ltd. to buy Saskatchewan's Potash Corp.  As much as the Government of Canada is anxious to expand its trade with the European Union, China and South American countries, it should not be at the expense of Canadian control of our own resources.

The determination under the Investment Canada Act, whether or not CNOOC represents a possible threat to Canadian ownership sovereignty of our own resources, through this massive investment should not represent a difficult-to-arrive-at conclusion.  Even if China's state-owned company pledged to honour Canada's standards of corporate governance, any company owned by China would have its first order of loyalty to China.

"We're also looking for a level playing field", explained Minister of International Trade, Ed Fast.  "We look for a balancing of opportunities as we engage with our key trade partners around the world.  When we negotiate trade agreements around the world, and investment agreements and other economic types of framework agreements, we always take the security of Canada into account.  In fact, it would be our top priority to make sure Canada remains safe, secure."

In which case, continue to welcome, smaller, controlled measures of investment by China in Canada's primary industries, and assert responsible government control by continuing to turn aside any such massive investments that would certainly benefit shareholders, and at the same time threaten Canadian sovereign decision-making in protection of Canadian resources.