CNOOC's stock price plummeted 6.28% during intraday trading on Thursday, as investors weighed the company's near-term benefits from geopolitical tensions against long-term structural challenges facing fossil fuel producers.

While China's major oil-and-gas companies including CNOOC have benefited from war-driven surges in energy prices in the short term, the conflict has reinforced Beijing's determination to accelerate its shift away from fossil fuels. Analysts note that the energy shock will ultimately boost China's position as the world's leading adopter and exporter of renewable energy, potentially leaving traditional fossil-fuel giants like CNOOC "in the cold" over the longer term.

The crisis has highlighted China's energy security vulnerabilities, with the country importing 70% of its oil, over half from the Middle East. This has prompted officials to instruct producers to aggressively diversify reserves and reinforce the importance of domestic production, even as the broader policy direction favors renewable energy development over continued reliance on fossil fuels.