CNPC graft investigation sheds light on 'Shengli gang'
Corruption probe reveals how a powerful group of executives formed a network and wielded enormous clout in the state oil sector
The corruption investigation of Jiang Jiemin, a former chairman of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), and several other senior officials at the state-owned energy firm has shed light on how powerful executives dubbed the "Shengli gang" carved out their network in Shandong early in their careers.
Jiang spent more than two decades from 1972 at the Shengli oilfield, the second largest on the mainland, and eventually became deputy director of the Shengli Oilfield Company.
He is now director of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, (Sasac) - a cabinet agency that oversees the 100 largest state-owned enterprises.
Jiang, who crossed paths briefly with the former senior party leader Zhou Yongkang at the oilfield in the late 1980s, enjoyed a rapid career path at CNPC, serving as its chairman from 2006 until March this year when he was appointed to head Sasac.
The probe into Jiang's dealings stretches back to his days at the Shengli Oilfield, as the South China Morning Post reported yesterday citing sources close to the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the party's top anti-graft watchdog.
The disciplinary investigation targeting Jiang comes days after four senior CNPC officials were put under investigation for corruption, including Li Hualin , a deputy head of the corporation and vice-president of its Hong-Kong-listed arm, PetroChina.
Li worked briefly at Shengli Oilfield, now a subsidiary of Sinopec, early in his career.