Analysis of Skopos Theory-Based Methods for E-C Translation of Petroleum Technical Documentation

Petroleum technical texts are vital for international energy cooperation but pose significant translation challenges due to their specialized, dense, and logical nature. This paper, grounded in Skopos Theory, systematically analyzes the key difficulties in translating petroleum technical texts from English to Chinese. Through comparative analysis and case studies of representative texts, it explores and summarizes targeted translation methods and techniques under the guidance of Skopos Theory’s three principles. The study focuses on handling complex linguistic features, particularly noun phrases and complex sentences, proposing multi-dimensional strategies such as deconstruction, restructuring, dynamization, logic explicitation, and voice optimization. The findings demonstrate that Skopos Theory effectively guides flexible strategies to enhance translation accuracy, readability, and practicality, ensuring effective technical communication for diverse audiences and purposes within the petroleum domain.