PetroChina to raise overseas output

PetroChina has said it wants its foreign operations to account for 10% of its total business by 2010, up from about 6% at present, a company official said today.

The unnamed official told Reuters the company had found 100 million tonnes (735 million barrels) of oil at each of two new projects in Mongolia and Chad, and had an estimated 400 billion cubic metres of gas at its Turkmen field.

"In Kazakhstan we also have a block of 3000 square kilometres. There are three wells with good indications of oil and gas," said the official.

The comments confirmed remarks made to an analysts' briefing by PetroChina Chairman Jiang Jiemin late yesterday.