(Yicai) April 24 -- Wang Dongjin, the chairman of China National Offshore Oil Corporation, the country's largest offshore producer of crude oil and natural gas, has resigned.

Vice Chairman Zhou Xinhuai will assume Wang's responsibilities before the new chairman arrives, CNOOC announced late yesterday. 

CNOOC described Wang's move as a "change of work." However, according to relevant regulations of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, the retirement age for top executives of large state-owned firms is usually 60, with a maximum age of 63, which Wang turns in July.

Wang, a graduate of China University of Petroleum East China, spent his early career at the country's largest oil and natural gas producer China National Petroleum Corporation, serving as a senior executive at its projects in Sudan and Kazakhstan successively. He was appointed deputy general manager of the firm's overseas business in 2008 before becoming president and vice chairman of its listed arm PetroChina.

Wang was named GM of CNOOC Group in 2018 and chairman of its listed subsidiary CNOOC in October 2019.

Shares of CNOOC [SHA: 600938] closed 0.2 percent lower at CNY25.09 (USD3.55) apiece in Shanghai today. Its Hong Kong-listed shares [HKG: 0883] fell 1.8 percent to HKD16.86 (USD2.17).

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev