Noboa heads to China for crucial meetings in Beijing

President Daniel Noboa begins a 13-day visit to China, Singapore and Vietnam, which includes “meetings of critical importance” with President Xi Jinping and other Chinese officials. He is scheduled to arrive in Beijing Sunday.

President Daniel Noboa and Chinese President Xi Jinping during a 2025 meeting in Beijing.

According to Minister of Production Luis Alberto Jaramillo, the top items on Noboa’s agenda are signing a contract making PowerChina manager of the Coca Codo Sinclair hydroelectric plant, resolving a dispute involving Ecuadorian shrimp exports to China, and discussions of new loans from Chinese banks.

During Noboa’s 2025 visit to Beijing, a general agreement was reached to turn operations of Coca Codo Sinclair over to ChinaPower and Jaramimllo says both sides are now prepared to sign the contract.

The agreement has been criticized by some energy experts, including two former energy ministers, due to ongoing operational problems at Coca Codo they say are the result of poor construction by contractor Sinohydro. Sinohydro is a subsidiary of PowerChina. In the contract, PowerChina has agreed make “necessary repairs” to power generation equipment although details of those repairs have not been made public.

Noboa also hopes to resolve claims by Chinese health officials that Ecuadorian shrimp imports contain “unacceptable amounts of contamination.” The officials say tests show high levels of the preservative sodium matalbisulfite while Ecuador shrimp farmers say the levels have been lowered and levels are only high in inedible shrimp shells.

Although shrimp exports have not yet been affected, China has warned they could be banned if the contamination is not reduced.

During his Asian trip, Noboa will also meet with leaders of Singapore and Vietnam to discuss trade and “issues of mutual interest.”