China's crude oil and natural gas output both hit record highs in 2025, with the oil and gas industry entering a new phase of "volume and efficiency growth with green development", the National Energy Administration (NEA) said in a report released July 21.

Crude oil output reached a record 216 million tonnes in 2025, while natural gas production posted its ninth consecutive year of growth exceeding 10 billion cubic meters, bringing total oil and gas output to 420 million tonnes of oil equivalent, according to the China Oil and Gas Exploration and Development Report (2026).

Shale oil output exceeded 8.5 million tonnes in 2025, more than 10 times the level in 2018, as three demonstration zones and one major production area consolidated their output growth. Unconventional gas output topped 110 billion cubic meters, up 7.7% year on year.

The oil and gas sector added over 9 GW of wind and solar capacity in 2025, while geothermal and waste heat utilization reached 12.61 million GJ.

From 2019 to 2025, the industry fully implemented a seven-year action plan to boost exploration and development, achieving record highs in both reserves and output, the NEA said.

In 2026, the sector will launch a new round of strategic exploration and development actions, maintaining annual crude output above 200 million tonnes while continuing to lift gas production, the report said. It will also deepen the integration of artificial intelligence with exploration and development, and accelerate the commercial-scale application of carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS).

The NEA said it will target key basins and areas to stabilize oil output and boost gas production, strengthen technological innovation and digital empowerment, and promote the integrated development of oil and gas with new energy.

On the integration front, the sector will plan the coordinated development of oil and gas exploration with wind, solar, geothermal and waste heat resources, aiming to build zero-carbon oilfields. It will also optimize energy use across the entire oil and gas production chain, raise electrification levels, and systematically replace traditional energy sources with clean alternatives to cut carbon emissions.

The report also highlighted plans to coordinate the development of gas storage, energy storage and carbon storage infrastructure, leveraging underground space resources, and to expand existing CCUS projects in the Songliao, Bohai Bay and Ordos basins to build industrial clusters.

Check more details for the "China Oil and Gas Exploration and Development Report (2026)" (Chinese version).