China's oil, gas exploration gains momentum in 2018: ministry

BEIJING -- China's oil and gas industry saw steady growth in 2018, with expansion reported in both proven reserves and annual output, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources on Monday.

In 2018, national exploration of oil and gas saw a total investment of 63.66 billion yuan (about $9.26 billion), up 8.9 percent year on year, the ministry said in a report on its website.

Investment in oil and gas exploitation rose 24.7 percent to reach 203.11 billion yuan, according to the ministry.

Newly added proven oil reserves stood at 959 million tonnes in 2018, a 9.4-percent rise after declining for two consecutive years.

During the same period, proven natural gas oil reserves saw an increase of 831.16 billion cubic meters, up 49.7 percent year on year, the ministry said.

China's petroleum output in 2018 remained stable at 189 million tonnes, down 1.2 percent from a year ago.

Meanwhile, the country's natural gas production, posting faster expansion, rose 6.4 percent year on year to 141.51 billion cubic meters.

Notable progress was made last year in oil and gas exploration theory as well as innovation of exploitation technologies, according to the ministry.