Jul. 3, 2009 (Xinhua News Agency) -- Official: China doesn't have 86 days' oil reserve claimed by IEA
BEIJING, July 3 (Xinhua) ?? Zhang Guobao, head of China's top energy decision maker, the National Energy Administration, denied the International Energy (OOTC:ILGL) Agency (IEA) estimate that China has enough crude oil inventories in its state-run strategic reserves, commercial companies and the private sectors to cover 86 days of oil imports.
Speaking with Nobuo Tanaka, the executive director of IEA, at the sidelines of China Energy (OTCBB:CHGY) and Environment Summit 2009, Zhang said, "It's impossible for China to have such an amount of crude oil reserve at the present time," refraining from citing China's official crude reserve statistics.
While addressing the conference in Beijing on Friday, Nobuo Tanaka said China has collected enough crude reserves to meet 86 days' import demand.
Citing a Chinese press report, the IEA official drew the estimate that China is now only four days short of the IEA's requirement to have crude reserves equal to 90 days of oil imports.
Inquiring on the issue, an executive from BP (NYSE:BP) (China) Investment Limited said that Chinese crude reserves may be able to meet 50 to 60 days' need now, but stressed the necessity to make further calculations.
Most industry insiders were surprised by the large gap between national strategic reserve numbers and the IEA's latest prediction.
