Extremely high likelihood of support from the Chinese government Competitive cost structure Dominant market position in offshore China Good growth prospects that a solid record of production growth support Solid cash flow generation and strong liquidity Exposure to volatile oil and gas prices Aggressive growth appetite Growing exposure to regions with higher sovereign risk Parent company's slightly weaker consolidated financial risk profile The rating on CNOOC Ltd. reflects the company's strong stand-alone credit profile and our opinion that there is an "extremely high" likelihood that the government of China (AA-/Stable/A-1+;cnAAA/cnA-1+) will provide sufficient and timely extraordinary support to CNOOC Ltd. in the event of financial distress. We assess CNOOC Ltd.'s stand-alone credit profile as 'a', reflecting our view of the
