Objective The 15th Five-Year Plan period is a crucial stage for China to accelerate the development of a new energy system and fulfill its carbon peaking commitments. It also represents a strategic turning point for oil and gas pipeline networks to upgrade from conventional single-purpose oil and gas transportation corridors to multi-energy integrated new energy infrastructure. There is an urgent need to clarify the impacts of evolving energy supply-demand patterns on oil and gas pipeline networks and identify the core directions for their high-quality development during this period, so as to provide a reference for decision-making regarding the scientific planning, forward-looking deployment and transformative development of China’s oil and gas pipeline networks.

Methods Against the backdrop of building an energy powerhouse and pursuing the dual-carbon goals, consumption trends and characteristics of petroleum, natural gas, hydrogen, green methanol, green ammonia, and other new energy carriers were systematically assessed. Based on operational practice of China’s oil and gas pipeline networks, core opportunities and key challenges for pipeline development were thoroughly analyzed.

Results Petroleum consumption is expected to reach a peak and remain in the stage, with a larger share shifting toward petrochemical feedstock, thereby increasing spare capacity in refined oil pipelines. Meanwhile, natural gas continues to grow steadily as a critical transitional fuel. However, surging peak-shaving demand from gas-fired power plants has introduced severe diurnal and weekly consumption fluctuations, requiring far more stringent real-time pipeline dispatching. Concurrently, emerging energy carriers—such as green hydrogen, green methanol, and green ammonia—are poised for large-scale industrialization. A stark spatial mismatch between their supply and demand opens vital opportunities to upgrade existing pipeline assets. Consequently, China’s pipeline networks face three major opportunities: expanding infrastructure driven by natural gas demand, developing multi-medium storage and transport businesses fostered by the energy transition, and advancing smart pipeline construction empowered by digitalization and intellectualization. Conversely, the sector faces compounding challenges: declining utilization and rising stranded-asset risks for legacy pipelines, rising construction and operational costs, the delicate balance between energy security and decarbonization, and an ongoing reliance on foreign core equipment and proprietary technologies.

Conclusion During the 15th Five-Year Plan, China should focus on three priorities in developing its oil and gas pipeline networks. First, optimize infrastructure layouts to strengthen the entire production, supply, storage, transport, and sales chain. Second, drive low-carbon transformation and multi-energy integration by scaling up hydrogen-blending in natural gas pipelines, repurposing idle refined oil pipelines, and expanding transport capacity for liquid carriers like green ammonia and green methanol. Third, overcome bottlenecks in core equipment and technologies to build a self-reliant domestic technical ecosystem and advance full-scale smart pipeline construction. Additionally, China must deepen pipeline operational reforms, refine market-based trading and pricing mechanisms, standardize multi-medium pipeline transport specifications, and introduce targeted supportive policies to provide robust institutional safeguards for the transformative upgrade of oil and gas pipeline networks.