CNOOC to up output by 15-16%

HONG KONG: China's largest offshore oil producer CNOOC Ltd plans to raise its oil and gas output by 15 to 16 percent to somewhere between 195 million and 199 million barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) in 2008.

That will compare to 169 million to 171 million BOE in 2007, Yang Hua, CNOOC's chief financial officer, told reporters in Hong Kong yesterday.

To fuel the growth, the company will earmark $5.24 billion as capital expenditure for 2008, increasing 43.7 percent compared with 2007. The capital expenditure for exploration and development activities is expected to increase to $1.04 billion and $4.15 billion respectively.