PetroChina Company Limited (PetroChina) announced that in the first quarter of 2021, grasping the favorable opportunities of macroeconomic recovery and demand rebound in the oil and gas market, the Company continued to optimize production and operation, vigorously strengthened marketing and further enhanced quality and profitability.

The company’s operating results enjoyed a promising start to 2021, achieving the best quarterly performance in the past 7 years. Major products recorded growth in production and sales. Domestic oil and gas equivalent output was 373 million barrels, representing an increase of 4.3% year-on-year.

Marketable natural gas output was 1.12 trillion cubic feet, representing an increase of 9.6% year-on-year. Outputs of chemical commodity products reached 7.381 million tons, representing an increase of 10.8% year-on-year. A total of 24.195 million tons of refined oil was sold domestically, representing an increase of 20.9% year-on-year. Domestic natural gas sales volume reached RMB54.655 billion cubic meters, representing an increase of 14.6% year-on-year.

Key cost metrics continued to decline. The oil and gas lifting cost decreased by 8.0% year-on-year after excluding the impact of exchange rate changes, while cash processing cost of refineries decreased by 8.2% year-on-year. Operating efficiency significantly increased.

Under the International Financial Reporting Standards, PetroChina achieved a revenue of RMB551,923 million in the first quarter of 2021, representing an increase of 8.4% year-on-year. The net profit attributable to owners of the company amounted to RMB27,721 million, achieving the best quarterly performance in the past 7 years.