Change of guard at CNOOC

China

BEIJING, April 18, 2017 – Yang Hua has stepped down as CEO of China National Offshore Oil Corporation Limited, the company said in a statement on Tuesday.

Having served for less than a year, Yang will continue in his roles as chairman and non-executive director. Company president Yuan Guangyu will take over as CEO. The latter will be replaced by Xu Keqiang, who will also double as executive director.

In related news, sources familiar with Chinese plans for its own futures contract on Tuesday said the contract would be launched in the second half of 2017. Plans to that end were first floated in 2014, but were believed to have been shelved in late 2016.

When pressed for a specific date, sources told Reuters “September or October.”

A spokesperson for the Shanghai International Energy Exchange said the bourse was “actively preparing” for the launch.