PetroChina and PDVSA, the national oil company of Venezuela, have established a joint venture on oil exploration and development, said Jiang Jiemin, Chairman of PetroChina Company Limited Tuesday.

PetroChina held 40 percent of the new company's shares, Jiang told Xinhua at the annual shareholders meeting.

According to Jiang, a joint venture transporting oil and two joint refineries would also be established. PetroChina would hold 50 percent stake in the former and 60 percent in the latter two.

One of the refineries would be located in eastern Guangzhou Province, Jiang said.

PetroChina is expected to produce 40 million tons of crude oil from Venezuela annually, Jiang said.

He also noted that construction of the China part of the pipeline transmitting crude oil from Russia to China will be started this month and the transmission capacity is expected to expand from the current annual 15 million tons.

Taking advantages of the decreased prices of oil and gas, PetroChina would expand its overseas business, and strengthen cooperation with both energy producers and international energy giants such as ExxonMobile, BP and Shell, Jiang said.

PetroChina is the Hong Kong and Shanghai-listed subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corporation, China's largest oil producer.

(Xinhua News Agency May 13, 2009)