ZHANJIANG, Guangdong: CNOOC Ltd, China's biggest offshore oil explorer, may double its crude oil and natural gas production in the western part of the South China Sea to meet rising energy demand in the country.

China's third-largest oil company may expand its output in the area to 20 million cu m by 2015 from 10 million cu m, or 38.97 million barrels, last year, Ke Luxiong, deputy general manager of CNOOC's Zhanjiang division, said after a media tour of the unit's operations in the southern city.

Increased energy demand in the world's fastest-growing major economy is prompting CNOOC to intensify exploration in the area. A number of overseas companies have shown "immense" interest in joining CNOOC's bid to develop deepwater blocks in the region, Xie Luhong, head of the CNOOC unit, told reporters in Zhanjiang in Guangdong province on Dec 4.