Hera Boom Town? Chinese Built Patrol Boats and Power Plants

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Airport Extension on the way: Chinese Fortune Cookie Gift?

Ro Funu Timor-Leste Nian: Husi Cina

Chinese Junk

Sent in by a reader:

"This is an example of standards for decommissioned generators in China. You can clearly see that decommissioned generators (such as the ones purchased by the Government in Guandong Province) cannot be used to generate power for domestic areas.

Perhaps the Parliamentarians should read through some of the reports mentioned in this letter, who knows perhaps they might find the Sulzers and the PC4 decommissioned generators that CNI22 purchased.

The pertinent part of the translation is: "....same set of facilities have been confirm decommissioning and suspended by National and Province."   Further that in relation to the equipment in question, referred to as "abandoned decommissioned generator", "The successful bidder shall not reinstall the machine and its facilities or generate electricity in domestic area."

It seems scrap metal in China was deemed good enough to bring over to Timor-Leste, just as we and NGO's have been saying."

Mao Loves Timor

The Chinese Government very graciously provided Timor-Leste with a brand new Foreign Ministry building last year. They even put a massive mural of the Great Wall across the ENTIRE back wall of the main conference room. Just to remind everyone who built the place, and who is listening to all the conversations. Hilarious. How subtle.

Nuclear Industry 22nd Construction Company Lao Nafatin

Heavy Oil is coming to Hera. It is a Blight Upon the Planet, not just Timor-Leste. Work has NOT stopped on the power plants. Despite, legal challenges being levelled against the Government's plans to use Chinese heavy Oil power plants to power the country, the Xanana Adminstration is pushing ahead. This is also in spite of President Horta's calls for a reasonable environmental impact assessement to be made.

Incredibly, the Chinese Nuclear Industry 22nd Construction Company has broken ground on the first Heavy Oil Power plant within metres of the main Dili - Baucau road artery in Hera. It is also very close to ecologically senstive mangrove forests, and tghe very population of Hera itself. One can only surmise that mangrove forests will posssibly die, the levels of cancer in Hera will rise sharply in coming decades, and the price of real estate will plummet. Additionally, everyone who wants to drive to the east - or alternatively to Dili from the east, will have to weather a bilious cloud of Heavy Oil pollutants.

One local NGO has called this Mega Project and Mega Problem. They are right. One assessment describes the impact as being:

Heavy Oil power plants are renowned for their high levels of air pollution including the release of extremely toxic PCDD and PCDF, otherwise known as dioxin and furans. These chemicals are known to deposit in soils for kilometres around the emission source (i.e., the power plants) as well as drifting through the atmosphere for thousands of kilometres to contaminate other countries. The transboundary nature of the pollution impacts from dioxin has led to global restrictions on activities which produce them.

In addition to dioxin contamination, heavy oil power plants contribute heavily to atmospheric acidification, heavy metal contamination and a significant risk to marine and coastal environments due to oil contamination of cooling water effluent discharge. Moreover as developed countries race to de-carbonise their economies in the face of accelerating climate change, Timor-Leste will be committed to decades of energy production with one of the highest carbon footprints. While heavy oil may currently appear to be a ‘cheap’ fuel for energy production, international carbon accounting and trading may soon place a heavy price tag on such dirty fuel.

Interestingly, there are a number of Timorese and Timorese-"connected" business interests who are spending more and more time in China looking to establish the necessary links to be able to obtain the heavy oil supply contract for these power plants. Another sole source job?

This is largest project ever undertaken in Timor - ever. Yet no one is allowed to see the contracts. The Government stubs its nose at the President when he calls for an assessment - and just digs, digs and digs. Turn the lights on in time for the 2012 election - and win the election.

China Extension?

Dragon in Timor?

Thoughts on China and Timor from a graduate of Peoples Liberation Army National Defense University (PLANDU).

Excerpts:

"China strongly opposed the opening of a Taiwanese Trade and Cultural exchange office in Dili and aggressively moved to bar an unofficial Taiwanese delegation from visiting the country in early 2006".

"Chinese companies are interested in exploiting Timor-Leste’s rich natural resources, particularly oil and gas"

"In 2006, intermediaries for PetroChina told the Timorese authorities that the company would be willing to exploit the onshore oil fields if the Dili government were to grant the Chinese exclusivity rights to the exploitation of all oil and natural gas resources found onshore."

“China is willing to assist Timor-Leste in any way beneficial to the government and people of this country. If the Timorese believe that a refinery is in their best interest, we shall study their request carefully and respond in the spirit of friendship and solidarity to the mutual
benefit of our brotherly nations”

"The resulting domestic and international criticism of the government’s decision [to buy Chinese patrols boats] makes it rather unlikely that the government will make any major weapons purchases from the PRC in the near future"

Friendly SuperPower?

One has to wonder what Canberra, Jakarta and Washington DC have to think about it all.

-----Original Message---
Sent: Tuesday, June 09, 2009 10:39 PM
To: east-timor@lists.riseup.net
Subject: China plans to continue providing development aid to East Timor

China plans to continue providing development aid

to World East Timor [ 2009-06-08 ]

Beijing, China, 8 June – The Chinese vice president, Xi Jinping Friday in Beijing pledged that China would continue to provide aid to East Timor at a meeting with the East Timorese Foreign Affairs Minister.

As developing countries, China and East Timor “are going through a period of great economic development and improvement of the living conditions of their populations,” said Xi Jinping cited by official Chinese news agency Xinhua.

He also noted a wish to "extend" cooperation with East Timor, a country rich in natural resources such as oil and natural gas, sources of energy that are needed for China’s development.

Zacarias da Costa said that his country valued its relationship with China and that it planned to boost cooperation in politics, trade and development of human resources.

China has supported East Timor in the construction of infrastructures in the country such as State buildings and in 2008 trade between the two countries totalling over US$900,000 in 2008. (macauhub)

That fateful evening

Three years ago this was the scene in Prime Minister Alkatiri's house as he signs the document requesting Australian military intervention in order to restore order in Dili.

The Timorese in this photo appear exhausted. The Australians and the lone Kiwi appear quite content. Notice the Chinese beer?

Good Bye Conflict and China