Tuesday was not a good day to be PetroChina. The world's second-largest energy company by sales reported Tuesday that net profit tumbled 33 per cent in the third quarter compared with the same period last year, despite strong growth in revenue and oil production.

But PetroChina knew exactly where to place the blame: on its owner, the People's Republic of China. PetroChina, which is listed in Hong Kong, Shanghai and New York, is majority owned by CNPC, a state-owned enterprise under the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. As a result it faces a difficult balancing act between the interests of shareholders and the interests of the state.

As China's biggest oil producer, CNPC plays a big role in meeting the energy needs of a rapidly growing economy and supporting Beijing's energy policies. But unfortunately for shareholders of PetroChina, following state diktat can sometimes be a costly undertaking. Due to Beijing's "control over prices of refined [oil] products", PetroChina reported a dizzying loss of Rmb37.4bn ($6bn) during the first nine months of this year in its refining and chemicals businesses.

The price of Beijing's energy policies was also apparent in PetroChina's natural gas division, where profits were all but wiped out. The company imports expensive natural gas through its Central Asian pipeline and through long-term LNG contracts, but sells this gas at a loss into the Chinese market because of price controls. PetroChina described "widening losses" from gas imports, and said profits from its natural gas and pipeline businesses fell 93 per cent in the first nine months of this year compared to the same period last year. PetroChina has said previously it expects natural gas price reform soon, and sees its natural gas business as part of a long-term strategy.

The company's results statement sums it all up. The falling profits this quarter were due to factors such as an increase in the amount of imported natural gas, the selling of imported natural gas in China at lower prices, and macroeconomic regulation and control over the prices of domestic refined oil products.

In other words: give us a break, Beijing.

But PetroChina's results weren't terrible, either. It has historically benefitted from its semi-monopolistic position in China's oil and gas sector and during the first nine months of this year turned a net profit of Rmb89bn despite the state-incurred losses. Curiously, PetroChina's "cash at bank and on hand" has doubled since the beginning of the year, reaching Rmb125bn ($20bn) at the end of the third quarter. With money like that in the bank, China's energy regulators may have a hard time finding sympathy for their national oil champion.