Fitch Ratings gave a strong rating to a Chinese oil exploration and production company in part because of low operating costs and focused spending.

Fitch Ratings said state-owned China National Offshore Oil Corp. ranks among the largest globally, with production at the end of 2014 on par with international rivals like BG Group and Italy's Eni, which both hold positive ratings from the agency.

Energy companies across the world are cutting costs and eliminating staff during the prolonged slump in crude oil prices. Compared with its peers, Fitch said CNOOC is straddling a fence.

"Its production cost of $12.2 per barrel of oil equivalent is at the lower end among its 'A' rated peers, although its gross debt to proved reserve ratio of 6.0x is higher than that of 'A' peers, and more in line with those in the 'BBB' category," it said.

In terms of costs, Fitch said CNOOC was streamlining capital by at least 16 percent more than its Chinese counterparts PetroChina and Sinopec.

The ratings agency said CNOOC and other Chinese companies like it are benefiting from state tax measures that shield energy and production companies from the low oil price environment.

"This provided a significant cushion against the fall in operating cash generation from lower realized oil prices," the ratings agency said.

CNOOC said it made remarkable progress by "thinking outside the box" in 2014. The company said it made 20 new commercial discoveries last year and increased oil and gas production by 5.1 percent year-on-year to 432 million barrels of oil equivalent.

For 2015, Chief Executive Officer Li Fanrong said the company was adjusting the way it does business in order to adapt to a "complex and changing environment."