New oil chiefs have tough challenges ahead

The headquarters building of CNPC (China National Petroleum Corporation), parent company of PetroChina, in Beijing, China, 13 July 2014. [Photo/IC]

On Monday afternoon, CNPC, Sinopec and CNOOC, the three oil and gas industry giants, announced the names of their new board chairpersons. The CNPC and Sinopec chiefs have retired, while CNOOC chairman Wang Yilin will now take over the reins of CNPC. Comments:

All the three State-owned enterprises have got new chiefs from outside the company. That's because the longer an official stays in one leading position, the more possible it becomes for him or her to seek personal interests, which, in turn, breeds corruption. Some of the recently hunted "tigers" from the gas and oil industry had worked in the same leading positions for too long. Thus, selecting an official from outside to fill a vacant post will curb corruption. There is no need to worry about their professionalism because the three enterprises are in the same business.

Wang Yukai, a professor at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, May 5

The new job as CNPC chief is quite challenging for Wang Yilin, because the company is older and more bureaucratic than CNOOC. He needs to introduce the experiences of CNOOC in international trade and market competition to CNPC in order to revitalize it. More important, CNPC has suffered hugely because of the anti-corruption campaign as many of its senior officials face investigation. Wang will need to help the company recover, which will be a difficult task.

hexun.com, May 5

Many say the appointments of the new chiefs have much to do with the anti-corruption drive, but few have noticed that business pressure is another important reason. Data show Sinopec's profits dropped 29.4 percent in 2014 compared with 2013, while its profit in the first quarter of 2015 fell 87.5 percent year-on-year. The percentages for CNPC were 17.3 and 82. As the global economy slows down and oil prices drop, the three oil and gas giants face heavy economic pressure.

Beijing Times, May 5