By an Online Correspondent
BEIJING, Sept. 24 -- PetroChina Co. plans to offer 18 oil and gas blocks in China's Tarim, Ordos, and Songliao basins for international tender.
The blocks, 13 of which are in the west, include Kela II gas field in the Tarim basin, which is one of China's largest gas fields.
One of the blocks is for risk exploration, in which foreign companies would take all the risk and share the discoveries with PetroChina in case of any commercial findings.
The remaining blocks include 3 for gas development, 11 for oil development, and 3 for production improvement.
PetroChina has signed 49 contracts with foreign oil companies but few of them have had any discoveries.
Zeng Peiyan, minister of the state Development Planning Commission, said foreign companies investing in western China E&P would get a preferential tax of 15% on oil and gas production, vs. the normal 30%.
