Design and impact estimation of a reform program of China's tax and fee policies for low-grade oil and gas resources

With China's rapid economic development, it is important to formulate reasonable and feasible tax and fee policies to promote the development and utilization of low-grade oil and gas resources to guarantee China's energy supply security. In this paper, by analyzing major problems of China's current tax and fee policies for oil and gas resources, a reform program for low-grade oil and gas resources is designed from the aspects of tax/fee items and tax/fee rates. The impacts of this reform program on China and China's oil companies during the "Twe lfth Five-Year Plan" are investigated according to the related data in 2008. The results show that the proposed tax and fee reform program will lower the tax burden of oil companies, promote the development of low-grade oil and gas resources, and increase China's GDP and national fiscal revenue. Besides that, it will bring positive social effects by increasing employment opportunities.