Chinese Oil Companies May Fall Out of Favor in Second Shale Gas Auction

The results of China's second shale gas auction will be released soon. Given the lower entry threshold, whether or not China's oil giants can win the bids has become a focus of the market. An official with China's Ministry of Land and Resources disclosed Monday that according to the review results, oil companies lost some advantages in the shale gas auction, while enterprises in the industries such as power, energy, coal, investment, and real estate managed to catch up.

On October 25, the ministry launched the second round of shale gas bid; it received 152 bids for the 20 shale gas blocks, which covers a total area of 20,000 square kilometers. 83 state-owned and private companies submitted bids for the blocks.