Comparison of the Oil and Gas Sectors in China and the US: Resources, Production, Technologies, Institutes, and Reforms

The article compares resource potential, geological characteristics, production dynamics and technological progress in the oil and gas sectors of China and the US, the countries that achieved significant progress in oil and gas production in the 21^st century. The Chinese oil and gas sector operates under more challenging geological and geographic conditions, and, therefore, Chinese oil companies have to apply state-of-the-art technologies adapted to the local specifics, while the government has to provide substantial support and incentives. The authors study evolution of the institutional framework of the Chinese petroleum industry that was transformed through a series of reforms from a planned command-and-control to a planned market model. Reforms were aimed at enhancing efficiency and competitiveness of the oil and gas sector as well as at reducing import dependency on overseas energy resources while retaining the key role of the Chinese Communist party and state ownership over strategic assets; in general, they achieved expected results. The article assesses prospects of shale gas production in China that the Chinese authorities perceive as an important driver of gas production growth in the country.

1. Arfaa, Noora; Tordo, Silvana; Tracy, Brandon S. (2013). National oil companies and value creation (Vol. 1 of 3). World Bank working paper|no. 218 Washington, DC: World Bank. https://doi.org/10.1596/978-0-8213-8831-0

2. Bereznoy, A. (2019). Catching-up with supermajors: the technology factor in building the competitive power of national oil companies from developing economies. Industry and Innovation, 26(2), pp. 127–157. https://doi.org/10.1080/13662716.2018.1467311

3. Erica Downs, Sheng Yan (2020). Reform Is in the Pipelines: PipeChina and the Restructuring on China’s Natural Gas Market. Columbia University. https://www.energypolicy.columbia.edu/research/commentary/reformpipelines-pipechina-and-restructuring-china-s-natural-gas-market#_ftn1

4. Ivanov N.A., Poussenkova N.N., Sokolov A.V. (2024). Production of Shale Oil and Gas in the US: Current Status and Prospects. Georesursy = Georesources, 26(3), pp. 240–249. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.18599/grs.2024.3.24

5. Jia C. (2012). Characteristics of Chinese Petroleum Geology. Zhejiang University Press, Hangzhou and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

6. Jian Wu, Jingqiang Tan, Jinqi Xu, Derek Elsworth (2025). Challenges to sustainable large-scale shale gas development in China. Environmental Sciences, 122(11). https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2415192122

7. Jiang B. (2011). China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC): a balancing act between enterprise and government. In: Victor DG, Hults DR, Thurber MC, eds. Oil and Governance: State-Owned Enterprises and the World Energy Supply. Cambridge University Press; pp. 379–417.

8. Julie Jiang, Jonathan Sinton (2011). Overseas Investments by Chinese National Oil Companies: Assessing the drivers and impacts. Information paper. EIA. https://www.oecd.org/content/dam/oecd/en/publications/reports/2011/02/overseas-investments-by-chinese-national-oil-companies_g17a1f69/5kgglrwdrvvd-en.pdf

9. Li Guo Yu (1992). Oil and Gas Geology of China. Novosibirsk: JIGGM SB RAS Publ. (In Russ.)

10. Li Zhao, Yu Lulu (2021). China’s Natural Gas Price Reform and Its Impact Analysis. DOI: 10.1051/e3sconf/202125101003

11. Meidan M. (2016). The Structure of China’s Oil Industry: Past Trends and Future Prospects. Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. https://www.oxfordenergy.org/publications/structure-chinas-oil-industry-past-trends-future-prospects/

12. Phillip Andrews-Speed (2013). China’s national oil companies: will the purge lead to reform? http://www.andrewsspeed.com/chinas-national-oil-companies-will-the-purge-lead-to-reform/

13. Poussenkova N.N., Sokolov A.V. (2025). Main Oil Producing Countries of North and South America: Factors of Successes and Failures. Georesursy = Georesources, 27(4), pp. 24–44. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.18599/grs.2025.4.23

14. Poussenkova N.N., Svetenko M.A., Sokolov A.V. (2025). Oil and Gas Production in Saudi Arabia: Comparison with the US Petroleum Sector. Georesursy = Georesources, 27(1), pp. 23–34. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.18599/grs.2025.1.21

15. Pussenkova N.N. (2022). National Oil Companies in the New Realities of the Global Energy Sector. Moscow: Idea-Press. (In Russ.)

16. Suping Zhao, Qun Zhao, Xiaowei Zhang, Xinchun Jiang, Huilan Wu, Jingxin Yan (2024). Key policy needs for the success of China’s shale gas revolution. Energy Reports, 11, pp. 4015–4020. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egyr.2024.03.052

17. Tiantian Wang, Fei Wu, Dayong Zhang, Qiang Ji (2023). Energy market reforms in China and the time-varying connectedness of domestic and international markets. Energy Economics, 117. DOI: 10.1016/j.eneco.2022.106495