China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) published its 2025 annual performance report on March 26, showing that its daily net production was 2.13 million barrels of oil equivalent and annual net profit attributable to shareholders was 122.1 billion yuan ($17.89 billion).
CNOOC was committed to stably raising production and strictly controlling costs, thereby gaining greater competitiveness and more resilient profits.
Record High Explored Reserves
CNOOC maintained its effective exploration on valuable oil fields, hitting a record high in oil and gas reserves. It was recognized as the National Oil Company Explorer of the Year in 2025 by Wood Mackenzie, a top energy and natural resources consulting company.
In 2025, CNOOC discovered six new oil and gas fields and evaluated 28 structures that bear oil and gas, which have net reserves of 7.77 billion barrels of oil equivalent, increasing by 6.9 percent from 2024.
In domestic exploration, CNOOC discovered Longkou 25-1 and evaluated Qinhuangdao 29-6, which demonstrate encouraging exploration prospects in the shallow lithologic fields of the Bohai Sea.
Overseas, CNOOC successfully evaluated Lukanani and Ranger, both of which are oilfields in the Stabroek block in Guyana. In addition, the company launched four new exploration projects in Iraq, Kazakhstan and Indonesia, thereby diversifying its overseas gas and oil asset portfolio.
Record High Production
In 2025, CNOOC put multiple new projects into operation and increased the utilization and recovery rates of the existing oilfields. CNOOC’s net oil and gas production reached 777.3 million barrels of oil equivalent, increasing by 7 percent year on year. The rise in crude oil production was 5.8 percent and that of natural gas was 11.6 percent.
CNOOC stabilized the oil production by widely using smart technologies. The company contributed to reducing the natural decline rate of China’s offshore oil fields to 9.5 percent. Its projects in South and North America achieved sustained growth in oil and gas production, which became a crucial source of the company’s overall production boost.
Technological Innovation
CNOOC used advanced geophysical techniques at scale to get more detailed seismic data, which was conducive to discovering the Huizhou 19-6, a deep-water oilfield with proven in-place reserves of over 100 million tons.
Daily offshore drilling efficiency was increased, which also sped up the “excellent & intelligent” drilling and completion demonstration project by 26 percent.
In addition, the R&D of a deep-water subsea Christmas tree and control system made progress. CNOOC continued with its “artificial intelligence plus” initiative, increasing the efficiency of completing certain tasks by over 30 percent.
The level of unmanned operations on offshore platforms also rose steadily. “Shenhai-1” Intelligent Gas Field was included in China’s first list of pioneer-level smart factories for cultivation.
Clean Production
CNOOC adhered to the low-carbon development strategy and included more associated gas in recycling, building a comprehensive system for green development.
In 2025, CNOOC consumed more clean electricity via the shore power projects. Its annual consumption was 1.08 billion kilowatt-hours, which reduced 680,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.
Large-scale and demonstrative offshore wind farms were under accelerated construction, in a bid to support the carbon capture and storage (CCS) and carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) initiatives. Haiyou Guanlan, China’s first deep-sea floating wind power platform, is in stable operation. The CZ7 offshore wind power project in South China’s Hainan Province and the world’s first 16-megawatt tension-leg platform floating offshore wind turbine designed for the South China Sea were under construction as planned. China’s first offshore CCUS demonstration project at Enping 15-1 Oilfield was successfully put into operation. The feasibility study of the Daya Bay CCS/CCUS Cluster Demonstration Project was completed.
Despite the fluctuations of international oil prices in 2025, CNOOC maintained profit resilience by stably raising production, reducing costs and enhancing efficiency. The annual sales of gas and oil hit 335.7 billion yuan ($49.12 billion), with the net profit attributable to shareholders reaching 122.1 billion yuan ($17.88 billion). The cost of each barrel of oil equivalent was $27.9, a year-on-year reduction of 2.2 percent.
In 2025, CNOOC contributed to social development by boosting rural revitalization, promoting education equity, preserving nature and enhancing people’s well-being. It also actively launched charity activities.
In 2026, with a focus on the main business of oil and gas, CNOOC will pursue more production with higher efficiency. It has set the annual production goal as 780 million to 800 million barrels of oil equivalent. It also aims to maintain a stable annual expenditure ranging from 112 billion yuan ($16.39 billion) to 122 billion yuan ($17.85 billion).
(Executive editor: Zuo Shihan)
