CNOOC goes whole hog to meet oil, gas demand

China National Offshore Oil Corp has been working on shoring up operations to ensure oil and gas security for domestic companies that have been resuming production to ease the impact of the novel coronavirus outbreak and maintain economic stability.

The corporation, China's largest producer of offshore oil and gas, has produced 9.61 million metric tons of oil and gas equivalent as of Feb 27, 5.5 percent up compared with the same period in the previous year.

Major projects including the Bozhong 19-6 gas field in Bohai Bay and Lingshui 17-2, the deepwater gas field located in water depths of 1,500 meters in the South China Sea, have all been operating to achieve the company's yearly oil and gas production target.

More than 120 of the company's offshore oil and gas fields have been running continuously amid the coronavirus outbreak, it said.

Also known as CNOOC, the corporation produced more than 43 million tons of crude and more than 17 billion cubic meters of natural gas last year.

As the second biggest crude production base, the Bohai oilfield has so far produced 4.94 million tons of oil and gas equivalent, a year-on-year increase of 9.97 percent. Bozhong 19-6, with proven oil and gas geological reserves of approximately 300 million tons, is also undergoing improvements to ensure the gas field is put into operation this year.

Bozhong 34-9 oilfield is located in the south of the Bohai Sea with average water depth of 18.1 meters. It has been put into operation on Feb 12th, and is expected to achieve daily crude production of 22,500 barrels by 2022, it said.

Analysts said CNOOC has illustrated its capabilities as oil and gas production has risen 5 percent during the past two months instead of falling in the face of the epidemic.

The heightened energy production has helped ease the impact of the disease on China's economy, said Li Li, research director at energy consulting company ICIS China.

The company has provided 73,700 tons of petroleum products during the Spring Festival holiday to provinces like Hubei and Zhejiang. Its 43 gas stations in Hubei are in service and have provided 4,900 tons of petroleum products to the region to help buffer the impact of the novel coronavirus outbreak.

It has also produced more than 32,500 tons of polyethylene and polypropylene, the raw material for face masks, syringes and other medical supplies that are necessary to produce protective products against the virus, helping ease the shortage of medical supplies.