Washington, DC  -  China’s state-subsidized purchase of a major American oil company could threaten the United States’ long-term national security and should be investigated before being approved, Congressman Mike Rogers said today.

The deal, which involves the state-backed China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) and whose majority owner is the Chinese government, would significantly increase foreign investment in U.S. energy resources. Rogers said the purchase could allow the Chinese to compete unfairly on the world market for increasingly scarce energy resources.

“China will continue to aggressively pursue its interests around the globe, but we can’t let it happen at the expense of our national security,” said Rogers, a member of the Armed Services Committee. “The Treasury Department should investigate this proposal and ensure these types of foreign acquisitions do not unfairly threaten our access to world energy sources.”

Rogers made the comments after co-signing a letter from U.S. Representatives William J. Jefferson (D-AR), Bobby Jindal (R-LA), Al Green (D-TX), and Kevin Brady (R-TX) to Treasury Secretary John Snow.

The letter asks the Treasury Department’s Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to investigate issues such as whether the Chinese government is involved in financing any potential acquisitions by CNOOC; whether such investments by CNOOC are market-based and free of subsidies; and whether there are technology transfer implications of these investments that present national security concerns for the United States.

Last night, Rogers also voted in favor of H.Res.344 which expresses the House’s concerns that “a Chinese state-owned energy company exercising control of critical United States energy infrastructure and energy production capacity could take action that would threaten to impair the national security of the United States.”