Judy Maksoud
International Editor
Offshore staff
China's economy is booming. Yuan Guangyu, CEO and president of China Oilfield Services Ltd., told participants at the Offshore Technology Conference in Houston May 4, "There are great exploration and production opportunities."
The country's burgeoning economy has stimulated energy demand. China is now the third biggest trade company and is the third largest importer of oil in the world, Yuan said.
Oil made up 28% of China's energy consumption in 2004. The cost of importing oil is skyrocketing, and China is working to develop its own resources. "The low oil price in the last century is just a happy memory," Guangyu said.
COSL is expanding using four core development strategies, Guangyu said: technology driven, low-cost advantage, integrated services, and internationalization. The objective is to provide what Guangyu called, "a high level of service activity."
The main challenge for expansion is to move outside China, Guangyu said. The company is limited by its small fleet, a dearth of specialized technology, and the need to learn more about how to do business overseas, Guangyu explained.
Despite that, COSL is working to expand its capabilities in order to keep pace with the industry as it moves into deeper regions for exploration. "The biggest potential is in deepwater," Guangyu said. His plan for COSL is to make sure it is poised to get its share of deepwater work.
05/04/05
