HONG KONG, Oct 25 (AFP) — China plans to restructure its biggest oil producer PetroChina and its parent China National Petroleum Group (CNPC) in a bid to create an oil giant capable of competing on the global stage, a press report said.

The move is part of a broader effort spearheaded by the State-Owned Assets Supervision Commission (SASAC) to create a string of corporate heavyweights that can hold their own in competition with the likes of the major multinationals such as Exxon-Mobil and Royal Dutch Shell, The Standard reported.

The task was made more urgent by the country’s accession to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), it said, citing unnamed SASAC officials.

Under the terms of its WTO entry, China will gradually open its markets to global competition. The central government is worried that few, if any, Chinese companies are up to the challenge, the newspaper said.

The Chinese officials hope to raise fresh capital from foreign investment by beefing up PetroChina’s international operations, the newspaper reported.

PetroChina, whose shares are listed in both New York and Hong Kong, would buy CNPC’s overseas assets for five billion dollars, the daily said.

It will pick up production or exploration rights in Kazakhstan, Venezuela, Sudan, Iraq, Iran, Peru and Azerbaijan to add to its Indonesian production, it added.