PetroChina Company Limited (“PetroChina” or “the Company”, HKSE: 00857; NYSE: PTR; SSE: 601857) reported that in the first quarter of 2009, according to International Financial Reporting Standards, net profit attributable to equity holders of the Company was RMB18.956 billion, while basic earnings per share was RMB0.10.  According to the China Accounting Standards, net profit attributable to equity holders of the Company was RMB18.774 billion and basic earnings per share was RMB0.10.

The result is better than expected despite a challenging and difficult environment including the spread and intensification of the global financial crisis, low international crude oil prices, declining domestic demand for oil and petrochemical products, and increasingly intense market competition.

Still, the company's net profit was donw 35.3% and revenue was down 30 percent from a year earlier.