CNPC to prioritize natural gas over next 5 years

Asia's largest oil and gas producer China National Petroleum Corp is betting big on natural gas, aiming to boost both its supplies and transportation capacity in the next five years.

The State-owned company, which provides more than two-thirds of the country's natural gas, plans to sell in excess of 750 billion cubic meters of the fuel between now and 2020, a 40 percent increase on the past five years, said Zhao Zhongxun, deputy-director of CNPC's planning department.

"Our top priority is to boost domestic supplies of natural gas, then adjust imports based on demand, and at the same time expand our pipeline network and capacity of LNG terminals," he said, detailing the energy giant's new five-year plan for natural gas, during a "green development" forum held in Beijing.