The Belt and Road Initiative and the strategy of safeguarding of Chinese energy supplies in Africa. Report n. 1 - October 2019

After a brief description of the role and posture of China in globalization, this report proposes an overview of the situation and perspectives of the Chinese energy mix: a strongly increasing consumption, with still prevailing coal, a strong development of renewable energies, and a frustrated ambition for nuclear. The authors then outline the increasing dependence on oil and natural gas imports, propose a discussion of the Chinese energy policy which aims at managing this dependence, at diversifying supply routes and sources, thus at securing shipping routes, and at internationalising Chinese oil companies. This results in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The objectives and means of this BRI are described. They deal with an economic expansion, a stronger energy security, the development of new diplomatic customers, at financing and developing projects. Then, after an evocation of the specific place of Africa in this BRI, the authors propose an overview of the African oil and gas landscape (a modest but strategic contribution, reasons for African attractiveness for foreign actors, a space wide open for competition, presence of Chinese companies in Africa), and more particularly focus on the Chinese presence in the African mining sector (targeted investments, the BRI as a support for investments in infrastructures). They finally discuss the new strategies implemented by China in Africa (objectives, consequences and limitations)