BEIJING, March 27 (UPI) -- China National Offshore Oil Corp. said Friday it would march through 2015 with a strategy focused on the complexities of navigating the low oil price climate.
CNOOC Ltd. said it made remarkable progress by "thinking outside the box" in 2014. The company said it made 20 new commercial discoveries last year and increased oil and gas production by 5.1 percent year-on-year to 432 million barrels of oil equivalent.
That production level is in line with strategies set at the beginning of 2014. Chief Executive Officer Li Fanrong said a focus on cost control and operational efficiency paid off for his company, though there may be challenges ahead.
"In 2015, the company will adjust its operating strategy to adapt to a more complex and changing environment in order to meet all the targets for the year," he said in a statement.
Oil prices are down about 50 percent from their June 2014 values, forcing most oil and natural gas companies to cut back on spending and staff.
In a fourth quarter report released in February, CNOOC said it was cutting its capital spending by around 30 percent from last year to around $12 billion, with development expenses taking the biggest hit.
CNOOC said Friday its overseas strategy was buoyed by what it described as "remarkable progress" from its Canadian subsidiary, Nexen.
The Nexen deal was among China's largest overseas acquisitions. The Canadian subsidiary said its long-term outlook was the same as it was when CNOOC made the acquisition more than two years ago.
Nevertheless, the company last week said it will cut roughly 340 employees from its North American operations. Its British division also started consultations aimed at shedding 60 employees from the payroll there.
