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China's Unocal bid sparks House threat
Washington D.C., USA: Citing national security concerns about U.S. oil supplies, the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee has vowed to introduce a bill to block a Chinese oil company from acquiring Unocal Corp.

U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) said he would also push legislation to strengthen the powers of the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States, a congressionally mandated committee that can block any foreign purchase of a U.S. company deemed to threaten national security.

Hunter's call for new legislation followed a hearing on Wednesday during which panellists such as former CIA director R. James Woolsey argued against the China oil deal by invoking memories of Pearl Harbor and China's uneasy relationship with Taiwan.

They were arguing against the $18.5 billion bid for Unocal by China National Offshore Oil Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of China's third-largest oil company, which is owned by the Chinese government.

The bid is designed to disrupt a lower, $16.6 billion offer by Chevron Corp.

To some observers of oil diplomacy, the brouhaha on Capitol Hill over Unocal seems out of proportion to the company's stature in the industry. Unocal's total output amounts to 0.23 percent of global oil production, and its share of U.S. production accounts for 0.3 percent of the oil consumed in the United States, according to the Congressional Research Service.

The threat scenarios cited by those opposed to the deal include the gaining of access by CNOOC to Unocal's oil resources in Indonesia, Thailand and elsewhere. CNOOC also might take control of the only U.S. mine that produces rare-earth metals used to guide smart bombs. It might also be able to turn Unocal's technology for oil exploration into dual uses that could benefit China's military.
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Shareholders approve Sprint and Nextel merger
New York: Shareholders of Nextel Communications Inc. and Sprint have approved Sprint's plan to buy Nextel, the companies said on Wednesday. Sprint's plan to buy Nextel for about $36 billion would create a wireless provider with more than 40 million customers, or roughly 26 percent of U.S. wireless subscribers.

Regulators are still reviewing the deal.

Several U.S. mobile network operators have agreed to combine since early last year in efforts to expand their networks and increase their marketing clout in the highly competitive market, which will still have four national operators after the latest round of consolidation.

Nextel attracted a following of loyal business customers as the only company to have a walkie-talkie-style push to talk service for years using its iDen network technology. But Sprint and Nextel face several challenges including the integration of two networks with incompatible technologies and the restructuring of relationships with affiliates.
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