by Xinhua writers Gao Lu, Liu Liwei, Liu Yanan

HOUSTON, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Energy companies should adjust themselves to the global trend of energy transformation, a senior researcher at a Chinese energy company has said at the IHS Markit's CERAWeek in the U.S. state of Texas.

The energy industry is undergoing a rapid transformation around the world, with clean energy at its core, Liu Chaoquan, vice president of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) Economics and Technology Research Institute, told Xinhua in an interview.

"The change features transformation from low-carbon to cleaner energy such as solar, wind, hydrogen, and nuclear. Energy companies have to pay attention to such a revolution in order to promote their reforms and keep up with trends," he said.

Liu said international energy conferences such as CERAWeek provided a good platform for global energy companies to learn from each other.

"At the CERAWeek, we noticed that energy company Chevron has invested a large amount of venture capital in clean energy and made great efforts on emission reduction and energy conservation. In comparison, such transformation in China was not so intensive," Liu said.

According to him, Chinese companies have done some research on the energy transformation. Besides research, companies should pay more attention to investments and implementations of clean energy, he said, adding Chevron's approach is well worth learning.

Liu said some energy companies in China have turned their orientation towards "gas-dominated, oil-assisted" approach. Usage of other clean energy sources will be gradually increased while the proportion of pillar energy - oil and natural gas - will be further reduced in the future.

Commenting on China's effort in terms of energy transformation, Liu said China is at the forefront of the world in terms of energy transformation. Taking electric vehicles for example, the inventory and annual increment of electric vehicles in China account for more than half of the world's total. So is the installed capacity for solar and wind energy.

Liu said the thermal power system in China has become increasingly cleaner after China decided to make every effort in air pollution control.

"There's not even a single piece of coal at the thermal power plant that I visited," he told Xinhua.

In terms of oil prices, Liu believed energy transformation does not associate with high oil prices in the long term. In the short run, oil prices are related closely to factors like geopolitics. Therefore, oil prices will rise once there is a shortage in supply. However, the role of oil is weakening in the long run thanks to the global trend of energy transformation.

"Energy companies must realize that a short-term price hike does not mean long-term prosperity in the oil industry," he argued.

Economics and Technology Research and Institute is mainly engaged in corporate strategy research and decision-making support. The institute is a pilot unit of the first batch of state high-end think tanks, and also serves as one of the first batch of research and consulting agencies of the National Energy Administration of China.

The 38th CERAWeek, which kicked off on Monday, is an annual energy meeting held by the London-based information company IHS Markit with the attendance of prominent speakers from energy, technology and financial sectors. This year's meeting was attended by more than 4,500 guests from over 70 countries and regions.

There is a special dialogue on China as well as several discussions designed to focus on Asian and Chinese energy market since China has become one of the largest energy consumption economies in the world. (Zhang Jingyu from China Petroleum Daily contributed to the story)