China launched its long-awaited national pipeline company Monday, state-owned Xinhua news agency reported, a move that is set to expand infrastructure access to energy industry stakeholders. The new company is expected to break up long-existing monopolies in China’s oil and gas sectors, with the ultimate goal of enhancing supply security and lowering the cost of the country’s energy consumption, market sources said. “[This is] a key step towards deepening China’s oil and gas reforms by increasing suppliers and supply channels of upstream resources and building a more efficient and competitive pipeline transportation system across the supply chain,” an official close to the National Pipeline Company was quoted as saying by Xinhua. The company will break up the country’s oil and gas pipeline transportation, from upstream production and downstream sales, and will facilitate third-party access to oil and gas infrastructure, helping boost market competition and efficiency of resource […]