chinese eyeing stake in hdr - rumour of fact?

I was speaking to a broker this morning (Large Broking House) who stated it's their belief that the Chinese Oil Company are looking at taking up a strategic position in HDR as they (COC) have large acerage positions onshore and they believe the country has huge reserves of oil - the surface of which has only been scratched. He also mentioned that the Chinese have been buying up Tullow Oil (UK) as well which is interesting as Tullow are in with HDR in Uganda but the broker stated they were more interested in Mauritania with Uganda being a bonus if it yields the goodies.

I'd be interested in hearing if anyone else has been hearing similar information.