OREANDA-NEWS. August 27, 2013. Chad has suspended all operations of the local unit of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) for "flagrant" violations of environmental regulations.

Chadian Oil Minister Djerassem Le Bemadjiel said that the decision followed officials’ visit to an oil exploration site in the southwestern town of Koudalwa, some 200 kilometers (125 miles) south of the capital, N'Djamena.

"Not only did they not have equipment to clean up oil that spilled out, but they intentionally let it spill in order to cut costs," Le Bemadjiel explained.

He said the company had filled huge trenches with oil and then had it removed by local workers without protective gear.

Le Bemadjiel said the CNPC managers would be held responsible for the "flagrant violations" and "unacceptable behavior."

The local unit of the state-owned oil company, China’s largest integrated energy company, has explored for oil in Chad since 2009. It also operates a refinery in N'Djamena.

Chad began producing oil in 2003 after completing a USD 4 billion pipeline linking its oilfields to terminals on the Atlantic coast.

Africa's fifth-largest nation had an output of 120,000 barrels per day in 2011, according to official sources.