China to play big role in Canadian energy, minerals

BEIJING - China's investment in Canada's energy and minerals sectors is to double in the next five years as the world's second-largest economy hunts globally for resources to sustain its rapid economic growth, said Peter Harder, president of the Canada China Business Council.

"Canada has a rich reserve of natural resources and it needs overseas investments to explore them. That matches China's growing investment appetite in the area," Harder told China Daily on Tuesday.

China's investment appetite in Canada's energy and minerals sectors has surged in recent years, the latest example being Sinochem's potential bid for the Canadian fertilizer giant Potash Corp.