NIAMEY (Reuters) -Niger has asked that some Chinese employees working on oil projects leave the country, documents seen by Reuters on Friday showed, a move that could affect dozens and further strain bilateral ties.
Similar to other West African countries, junta-led Niger has been trying to assert greater control over its natural resources and promote local employment.
Oil minister Sahabi Oumarou has asked the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) and its refinery SORAZ to terminate the contracts of expatriates who have been working in Niger for more than four years, two letters showed.
In a letter to SORAZ dated May 21, Oumarou indicated there would be some flexibility, saying he understood the need to keep certain employees in the country and that departure decisions would be made on a case-by-case basis.
Yet in a separate letter to CNPC, dated May 20, Oumarou said he would decline a private meeting with the company’s CEO who had asked to discuss tensions between the two sides.
In that letter, Oumarou also accused CNPC of non-compliance with local regulations.
The Chinese foreign ministry didn’t immediately reply to a Reuters’ request for comment.
In March, Niger expelled three Chinese oil executives in a dispute over disparities between the salaries of expatriate staff and lower-paid local workers.
Following the executives’ dismissal, CNPC’s top officials have been trying to meet with the government for negotiations, a source close to the company said.
If the decision described in the May 20 and May 21 letters is applied, dozens of Chinese workers will have to go home, the source said.
(Reporting by Moussa Aksar; Additional reporting by Liz Lee in Beijing; Writing by Anait Miridzhanian; Editing by Robbie Corey-Boulet and Susan Fenton)
