Bloomberg article 29 June 2010

“One of the advantages the big Chinese oil companies have is government support, it’s an open secret,” said Gideon Lo, an energy analyst at DBS Vickers Hong Kong Ltd. “The government establishes high-level contacts with oil-producing countries. Once this is done, the oil companies can come in and negotiate.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-06-30/india-losing-to-china-in-africa-to-kazakhstan-to-venezuela-oil-purchases.html

The article talks about the Chinese investment in the oil industry, but it does show an S.O.P. or pattern when making overseas investments.