The Trump administration yesterday added China’s oil giant CNOOC, ExxonMobil’s partner in Guyana’s offshore Stabroek Block to a blacklist of alleged Chinese military companies, according to Reuters.
Also blacklisted was China’s top chipmaker SMIC.
CNOOC International holds a 25% working interest in the Stabroek Block. ExxonMobil is the operator with 45% interest and Hess has a 30% working interest. It is unclear what impact the blacklisting would have on CNOOC’s participation in operations here.
While the blacklisting did not initially trigger any penalties, Reuters said that a recent executive order issued by President Donald Trump will prevent U.S. investors from buying securities of the blacklisted firms starting late next year.
The Chinese embassy in Washington, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) and China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC) did not immediately respond to requests from Reuters for comment.
Shares of CNOOC’s listed unit CNOOC Ltd fell by nearly 14 percent following a Reuters report on Sunday about the blacklist.
The expanded blacklist is seen as part of a bid to entrench outgoing Repub-lican Trump’s tough-on-China legacy and to box incoming Democrat Biden into hardline positions on Beijing.
Reuters said that top U.S. asset managers Vanguard Group and BlackRock Inc each own about 1% of shares of CNOOC’s listed unit CNOOC Ltd, and together own roughly 4% of outstanding shares of SMIC, disclosures show.
