China's first national-level lacustrine shale oil demonstration zone — the Jimsar Shale Oil Demonstration Zone — located in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Photo: Screenshot from CCTV

China's first national-level lacustrine shale oil demonstration zone, located in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, has achieved an annual output of more than 1.5 million tons for the first time this year, marking a shift in China's shale oil development from technological exploration to large-scale and stable production, China Central Television (CCTV) reported on Wednesday.

Located in the eastern part of the Junggar Basin, the Jimsar Shale Oil Demonstration Zone has continuously optimized key technologies such as drilling and fracturing, significantly improving development efficiency, according to the report. 

The average daily output of newly drilled wells has reached 1,360 tons, while the drilling completion cycle has been shortened by 10 percent compared with the original plan. To date, the demonstration zone's cumulative output has reached 5.19 million tons, making it China's first shale oil production base with an annual output exceeding 1 million tons, the report said

The Jimsar Shale Oil Demonstration Zone is part of the Xinjiang Oilfield, the first large oilfield developed after the founding of the People's Republic of China. The oilfield holds more than 1 billion tons of shale oil resources, ranking among the top nationwide in both reserves and development scale.

Over the past 70 years, the Xinjiang Oilfield has produced more than 560 million tons of oil and gas equivalent. Situated within the resource-rich Junggar Basin, the oilfield benefits from abundant reserves, with proven petroleum resources of 15 billion tons and natural gas resources exceeding 6 trillion cubic meters. 

"These vast reserves provide a solid foundation for the continued capacity expansion of the Xinjiang Oilfield and for advancing China's efforts to optimize its energy structure," the CCTV report said.

According to China National Petroleum Corp, the developer, the Jimsar zone is set to reach an annual shale oil production level of 1.7 million tons in 2025, with Xinjiang Oilfield accounting for 1.4 million tonnes and Tuha Oilfield producing 300,000 tonnes, the Xinhua News Agency reported earlier.

The recoverable shale oil reserves in China, one of the world's major crude oil consumers, ranks third globally. China has established three national-level shale oil demonstration zones in Xinjiang, Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province and East China's Shandong Province.

In January this year, officials from China's National Energy Administration announced plans to stabilize domestic crude oil output above 200 million tons in 2025 while sustaining the upward momentum in natural gas production.

In 2024, China's total oil and gas output surpassed 400 million tons of oil equivalent for the first time. Crude oil production hit 213 million tons, nearing the historical peak. Shale oil output broke through 6 million tons, up more than 30 percent year-over-year. Shale gas production exceeded 25 billion cubic meters, maintaining steady and sustained growth, official data showed.


Global Times