In 2005, oil made up 22.7 percent of the nation's total energy needs compared with 16.6 percent five years ago, according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), carried by the official Xinhua news agency.

Although the nation's net imports of crude and refined oil dropped 5.3 percent year-on-year in 2005, the world's second biggest consumer of oil, imported a record 130 million tonnes of crude in 2005, up 3.3 percent from the previous year.

Meanwhile, the output of natural gas last year rose to 47.5 billion cubic meters, up from 27 billion cubic metres produced in 2000.

Natural gas totalled only 2.6 percent of the energy-hungry nation's needs, compared with 2.1 percent five years ago and despite a strong push by the government to increase the use of the cleaner resource.

China became a crude oil importer in 1993 and has since been racing to secure resources abroad to power its booming economy as domestic production has fallen into an overall decline.

China's largest oilfield, Daqing in the northeast, is gradually being exhausted, although officials hope the northwestern region of Xinjiang can become an alternative as it sits on 30 percent of the nation's total oil reserves and 34 percent of its natural gas.

By the end of 2005, China had signed more than 200 contracts with foreign oil partners and attracted 9.3 billion dollars in overseas capital for related energy projects, the report said.

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