China’s oil output to scale new heights

New discoveries and stabilisation of legacy fields’ output have helped China reverse the decline and be a top-five producer in recent years

China has continued to expand domestic oil and gas output this year, with production that is on track to hit record highs underscoring the high priority placed by Beijing on sustaining and increasing domestic hydrocarbon production for energy security—despite booming renewable energy deployment and electric vehicle sales. Chinese oil production reached 18.47mt in May, equivalent to 4.40m b/d and a year-on-year gain of 1.8% that marks the second-highest monthly growth rate this year, according to figures released in mid-June by the National Bureau of Statistics. Crude output for the first five months increased by 1.3% year-on-year, to 90.29mt, or 4.42m b/d. Gas extraction in May climbed by a