Market cap

* For banks, enterprise value is substituted with market cap. Source: Bloomberg Finance L.P.

Performance of the brand

PetroChina Company Limited (PetroChina), a subsidiary of the government-owned China Petroleum National Corporation, is the largest oil and gas producer and seller occupying a leading position in the oil and gas industry in the People’s Republic of China. It is one of the largest companies in China in terms of revenue, as well as the second largest energy company in the world. PetroChina is currently the most profitable company in Asia, being the first in the region to reach a trillion dollar market capitalisation. The Group is divided in five distinct business segments: Exploration and Production, Refining and Chemicals, Marketing, Natural Gas and Pipeline. Within these segments, PetroChina engages in the development, production and sales of crude oil and natural gas, the refining of crude oil and petroleum products, the production and sales of basic and derivative chemical products, the marketing and trading of refined products, the transmission of natural gas, crude oil and refined products, and the sales of natural gas.

Although faced with a rather complex macroeconomic environment and severe natural disasters such as the Japanese earthquake in 2011, the Group implemented its key strategies on “resources, marketing and internationalisation” and strengthened the overall balance among production, transportation, marketing and storage. With net profits of RMB 139,871 million in 2010 (year ended December 31, 2010), representing an increase of 35.6% over 2009, PetroChina’s strategy seemed to be successful. The company’s net profit also increased by 35.4% to RMB 139,992 million in 2010. Furthermore, for the first half of 2011, PetroChina reported positive results as well. The Group’s turnover increased by 39.1% from RMB 684,797 million for the six months ended June 30, 2010 to RMB 952,247 million for the six months ended June 30, 2011. These results were primarily due to the increase in the selling prices and sales volume of PetroChina’s major products including crude oil, natural gas, gasoline, and diesel.

Spurred by its positive financial results and successful key strategies, PetroChina’s brand value climbed from $4,879 million in 2010 to $9,339 million (+91.4%) in 2011, placing the oil and gas producer 92^nd within the BrandFinance^® Global 100 Brands 2011 September Update. At the same time, PetroChina recorded an enterprise value of $223,217 million and even improved its brand rating from AA-in 2010 to AA in 2011.

For the upcoming years, global energy use is expected to further move towards consumption in an energy-saving, highly efficient, clean and low-carbon mode. Today, PetroChina primarily focuses on refined and chemical products rather than on clean energy. In order to profit of the changing consumption patterns, PetroChina will have to increase its efforts to promote a safe and green production development. Yet, due to the rapid development of the China’s economy, natural gas also faces a greater level of uptake since energy consumption and production will keep increasing. However, CEO Jiang Jiemin has worried about the unpredictability and sustainability of crude oil prices, claiming that “oil prices are already high, and should not gain much further in the near term if there is no serious new crisis in the Middle East and North Africa”. PetroChina’s purchase of Encana’s Cutbank Ridge shale gas assets on the border of Alberta and British Columbia is a sign of the times, with an Asian company suddenly drilling in North America.

League tables

PetroChina appears in the following brand league tables:

Rank 114 in the Global 500 2011.
Rank 175 in the Global 500 2010.
Rank 7 in the China 100 2010.
Rank 209 in the Global 500 2009.