China's imports of crude oil, natural gas surge in 2018

BEIJING - China's imports of crude oil and natural gas jumped in 2018, official data showed Monday.

Crude oil imports surged 10.1 percent year-on-year to 460 million metric tons last year, a record high, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in a statement.

In December, crude oil imports soared by almost 30 percent to 43.78 million tons.

The crude oil output in the country fell in 2018 but at a slower pace compared with that in 2017. Total output stood at 190 million tons, down 1.3 percent year-on-year, NBS data showed.

Meanwhile, natural gas imports came in at 90.39 million tons in 2018, rising 31.9 percent year-on-year.

Production of natural gas also saw notable increase last year amid government efforts to encourage the use of clean energy. Total output came in at 161 billion cubic meters, up 7.5 percent year-on-year.

China aims to increase domestic crude oil output to 200 million tons by 2020, while supply capacity for natural gas should exceed 360 billion cubic meters.

Major tasks for the oil industry include accelerating exploration to ensure domestic oil supply, speeding up construction of pipeline networks and developing clean alternatives.