Photo taken on May 12, 2021 shows the Deep Sea No.1 deep-water gas field, 150 kilometers off the city of Sanya in south China's Hainan Province. Deep Sea No.1, China's first self-operated 1,500-meter deep-water gas field, started production on Friday, according to the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC).Photo:Xinhua

China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC) began trading on the A-share market on Thursday, and its shares closed 27.69 percent higher. The IPO means that all of China's three oil giants are now listed on the domestic capital market.

The share price finished at 13.79 yuan ($2.14), a 27.69 percent increase, with turnover exceeding 12.1 billion yuan, while most stocks ended lower on China's major exchanges.

CNOOC's A-share offering price was 10.8 yuan per share, and the issue raised 28.08 billion yuan.

The oil and gas section of the stock market also saw an increase on Thursday.

The funds raised by CNOOC will be used for new oil and gas projects at home and abroad, including the Payara oil project in Guyana and the Liuhua 11-1/4-1 Oil Field in the South China Sea, media reported.

The surge in CNOOC's share price may have been due to its relatively low valuation, Dong Dengxin, director of the Finance and Securities Institute of the Wuhan University of Science and Technology, told the Global Times on Thursday. 

"But the more important factor is high global oil and gas prices, and this is what lifted most stocks in the section," said Dong.

CNOOC's main business is the exploration, development, production and sale of crude oil and natural gas. It is the largest offshore producer of crude oil and natural gas in China, and one of the largest independent oil and gas exploration and production groups in the world.

The company on Wednesday reaffirmed the normal operation of its overseas assets in Britain, Canada and the US, responding to media reports one week ago alleging the company was planning to exit operations in the UK and North American markets over concerns its assets may become the target of US-led economic sanctions.

CNOOC has set production targets of 600-610 million barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) in 2022, 640-650 million BOE in 2023 and 680-690 million BOE in 2024.

Dong suggested that both the performance and investment potential of the company are better than those of its two main rivals, Sinopec and China National Petroleum Corp.

"The three Chinese oil and gas majors have reunited in the A-share market, which will become long-term investment targets for individual investors and firms based on their strong abilities of profit-sharing," said Dong.

Global Times