Threat to the Petrodollar

According to some this is the real reason for all the wars of the last 30 years – protection of resources and the petrodollar

China To Sell Oil In Yuan In Blow To Dollar

Alternative Economics,

16 September, 2012

There is a story running doing the rounds regarding Lindsey Williams announcement below that China announced that it will sell oil using the Yuan in a major move away from the dollar.

Although no official source was listed in the reblogged articles I did manage to find a few stories below which lends some credibility to Williams claims below:

Lindsey Williams: “The most significant day in the history of the American dollar, since its inception, happened on Thursday, Sept. 6. On that day, something took place that is going to affect your life, your family, your dinner table more than you can possibly imagine.”

“On Thursday, Sept. 6… just a few days ago, China made the official announcement. China said on that day, our banking system is ready, all of our communication systems are ready, all of the transfer systems are ready, and as of that day, Thursday, Sept. 6, any nation in the world that wishes from this point on, to buy, sell, or trade crude oil, can do using the Chinese currency, not the American dollar. – Interview with Natty Bumpo on the Just Measures Radio network, Sept. 11

We already know China has signed trade agreements with various nations to trade in renminbi.Due to the euro crisis in Europe and growing demand from Asia, Russia is looking to export more to China in particular and is already building a pipeline to export to China by the end of 2012 as reported by the StarTribune:

Russia wants to be more than a supplier of natural resources to Asia, however, and is eager to attract the investment it needs to diversify and modernize its economy.

The first pipeline to send oil east to China began operation in early 2011. An extension of the pipeline to a port near Vladivostok is scheduled for completion by the end of this year, and Russia wants to build plants there to produce petro-chemicals and fertilizers, adding value to its exports.

After the APEC conferance it was reported by energyglobal.com  that China will export oil from its Tianjin facility.

The Russian and Chinese governments have agreed to allow oil products to be exported from the Tianjin refinery which is located north of Beijing. The facility is a joint venture between OAO Rosneft and China National Petroleum Corp. Construction of the 13 million tpy facility begun in 2010 and is 51% owned by the Chinese partner. Exporting oil products from the site will have add a major boost to the facility’s profitability.

And from Platts it has been reported of China’s intention to export oil. Although there is no report of what currency the oil is to be sold in, you would have to assume its in renminbi in light of all the trade agreements China has signed.

China has granted the future Tianjin refinery, a joint project of Russia’s Rosneft and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), the right to export its oil products, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin said at a conference Friday.

“Today, at a bilateral meeting the leader of the People’s Republic of China, Hu Jintao, has informed us that the Tianjin joint venture will receive the right to buy and sell oil products, export them and supply to the domestic market,” Putin said at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation CEO Summit in Russia’s Vladivostok.

It is the first time Chinese authorities have granted such a right to a project with foreign capital, Putin said, adding that this is another step in further improving economic relations between China and Russia.

The decision is to support efficiency of the joint project, Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin told reporters on the sidelines of the summit.

According to Rosneft, the refinery will process 13mln tonnes, to put in context, Rosneft exports 40mln tonnes to Europe. Thats not a particularly large amount but who knows where it will lead.

The new refinery will process 13 mln tonnes (95 mln barrels) of oil, of which 9 mln tonnes will be from Russia. The oil will be delivered by tankers to the port of Tianjin and from there via a 42 km pipeline to the refinery. Light product yield will be in excess of 80%. Target markets are Northern China and regions of the country’s Central Plateau, including Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei province, Changzhi, Jinan and Shandong province, as well as the Eastern Chinese seaboard.

I wouldn’t quite claim this is the end of the dollar just yet, but watch this space.