OREANDA-NEWS.  July 17, 2013. Chinese offshore pure play oil and gas exploration and production (E&P) company, CNOOC Ltd. ( CEO ) recently brought online the oil field Wenchang 8-3E.

Located in the western Pearl River Mouth Basin, Wenchang 8-3E oilfield is part of the four-field Wenchang complex. It lies in an average water depth of about 110-120 meters. The current production level at the Wenchang 8-3E oil field has not been disclosed by the company.

The Chinese offshore field is being explored with the use of four producing wells and is due to reach peak production by the end of the year. CNOOC is developing the oilfield as a 100% operator. The development of Wenchang 8-3E will consist of six platforms and infield pipelines.

We remain positive on CNOOC's performance, which reflects its premium assets portfolio, excellent execution strategy, unique position as a pure oil player and potential transactions in the merger and acquisition space.

CNOOC is one of the three leading oil companies in China and among the largest independent oil and gas exploration and production companies of the world. It is China's dominant producer of offshore crude oil and natural gas and engages in the exploration, development, production as well as sale of crude oil, natural gas, and other petroleum products.

CNOOC Ltd. is the only company permitted to conduct exploration and production activities with international oil and gas companies off the shores of China. The Chinese government owns 64.41% stake in the company by virtue of its ownership of CNOOC (China National Offshore Oil Corporation).

CNOOC carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). However, there are other Zacks Ranked #1 (Strong Buy) stocks - PetroQuest Energy Inc. ( PQ ), Ocean Rig UDW Inc. ( ORIG ) and Hornbech Offshore Services, Inc. ( HOS ) - that are expected to perform impressively over the short term.