The construction site of Yongye No.16 platform at Yongchuan deep shale gas field. Photo: Courtesy of Sinopec Southwest Oil & Gas Company.

China has achieved a major breakthrough in shale gas exploration with the discovery of a new deep shale gas field in the southwestern region of China, holding proven reserves of over 100 billion cubic meters, according to a subsidiary of Chinese oil giant China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) on Friday.

The field, operated by Sinopec Southwest Oil & Gas Company, has confirmed geological reserves of 124.588 billion cubic meters. This significant find is expected to bolster China's energy security and spur further exploration in the region.

This marks the emergence of another large deep, contiguous shale gas field with over 100 billion cubic meters of proven reserves in China, according to the information the Sinopec Southwest Oil & Gas Company shared with Global Times on Friday.

As a key component of Sinopec's "Deep Earth Project," this newly discovered proven shale gas field will support the construction of the 100 billion cubic meter production capacity base in Southwest China's Sichuan and Chongqing, and provide clean energy for the high-quality development along the Yangtze River Economic Belt, said the company.

The Yongchuan shale gas field, which now has total proven geological reserves of 148.04 billion cubic meters, is classified as a deep shale gas deposit. It lies in the complex geological structure of the southern Sichuan Basin, with its main body buried at depths over 3,500 meters.

In recent years, China has been intensified its efforts to increase domestic oil and natural gas production, including the intensified exploration and development of unconventional resources such as shale oil and gas. Sinopec Southwest Oil & Gas Company, for instance, has made notable achievements, including the discovery and development of several major conventional natural gas deposits and deep shale gas fields.

These discoveries are significant in unlocking China's potential of shale gas resources and capacity, and have played a vital role in advancing the country's green, and low-carbon development, said the company.

Exploration in this challenging geological environment began in 2016, when the first pilot well, Yongye 1HF, achieved a major breakthrough, leading to the initial discovery of the field. In 2019, a further 23.453 billion cubic meters of proven reserves were confirmed.

Innovative technologies have been crucial to making deep shale gas both visible and accessible, said the company, adding that the research team collected extensive high-precision 3D seismic data and conducted integrated geological, geophysical, and engineering studies. This led to the development of advanced structural mapping and imaging technologies that addressed the challenges of visualizing and characterizing deep shale gas.

The team also introduced a strong-support volume fracturing process, which allows buried shale gas to flow continuously through three-dimensional channels. This innovation has greatly improved development efficiency and increased the average economically recoverable reserves per well.

Liu Wei, the company's executive director and Party secretary said that the southern Sichuan Basin's complex tectonic zone is rich in shale gas resources, offering broad prospects for exploration and development.

The Yongchuan field, located in a core area for shale gas reserves and production growth, plays a vital role in national energy security. Moving forward, the company will continue advancing shale gas development in southern Sichuan, following a strategy of "building, evaluating, and tackling one area at a time" to improve reserve utilization and gas field recovery rates, Liu added.

Global Times