Chinese energy major CNOOC slashes output targets and project spending amid oil slump
CNOOC has slashed its oil and gas output targets for this year and next year and has cut its capital expenditure budget by more than analysts’ expectation as oil prices slump to their lowest in over 12 years.
China’s dominant offshore oil and gas producer has set an oil and gas output target of 470 million to 485 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) for this year, two to five per cent lower than last year’s estimated realised output.
The new target for this year is 4.7 to 7.7 per cent lower than the 509 million boe it projected a year ago. It has also slashed its output target for next year to 484 million boe, down 5.7 per cent from that projected a year earlier. For the first time, it also unveiled a target for 2018 – of 502 million boe.
The target for this year is lower than the around 500 million boe expected by analysts at brokerages Barclays and Sanford Bernstein.
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Last year’s output was 14.5 per cent higher than 432.5 million boe produced in 2014, and was at the high end of its target of 475 million to 495 million boe announced a year ago.