China has confirmed the discovery of a major gas field in the South China Sea, state media reported on Wednesday.
Called Lingshui 36-1, the field is estimated to contain more than 100 billion cubic metres of natural gas and is the world’s first “ultra-shallow gas field in ultra-deep waters”, China’s official Xinhua News Agency reported.
The latest “major exploration breakthrough” was announced by the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) in June, and the discovery was reviewed and registered by state authorities on Wednesday.
Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team.
The report did not specify the exact location of the field, only saying it is in waters southeast of Hainan, China’s southernmost island province.
China claims almost the entirety of the South China Sea with a “nine-dash line”, while Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan all have overlapping claims. Disputes and tensions often rise over each other’s oil and gas exploration and development attempts in the contested waters.
The field adds to China’s detected geological reserves of natural gas in the resource-rich South China Sea and in basins offshore Hainan island and the Pearl River mouth, topping the trillion-cubic-metres level.
“Lingshui 36-1 gas field is located in western South China Sea, with an average water depth of around 1,500 meters,” CNOOC said in June.
“The main gas-bearing play is the Ledong Formation of Quaternary, with an average burial depth of 210 meters. The field has been tested to produce over 10 million cubic meters per day of open flow natural gas.”
The CNOOC statement also quoted Zhou Xinhuai, its president and chief executive, as saying that the “South China Sea has been a major region for the company to boost natural gas reserves and production. The successful testing of Lingshui 36-1 further expands the resource base for the development of a trillion-cubic-meters gas region in South China Sea”.
“The company will continue to step up exploration and development of hydrocarbon resources in the South China Sea and to enhance our capacity of energy supply.”
China is the world’s largest natural gas importer, with about US$64.3 billion spent on 120 million tonnes of liquefied and pipe gas in 2023. The discovery of major reserves would be a boost to the country’s energy security.
However, developing oil and gas in the South China Sea would likely face diplomatic and political risks from rival claimants. In 2014, CNOOC’s oil rig Ocean Oil-981’s operation in a disputed area near the Paracel Islands triggered widespread anti-China protests in Vietnam.
Beijing has also tried to stop unilateral oil and gas development in the South China Sea by other countries.
Chinese coastguard vessels have reportedly disrupted operations of Malaysia’s gas projects, and Chinese and Vietnamese vessels have had repeated confrontation over Hanoi’s oil drilling operations in the disputed Vanguard Bank in the past several years.
More from South China Morning Post:
- Chinese ships ignore Vietnam demand to leave area close to Russian-run gas fields in ‘worrying escalation’
- China expands Shenhai-1 gas field in South China Sea with eye on Greater Bay Area energy transition
- Can Beijing and Hanoi overcome their latest South China Sea flashpoint at Vanguard Bank?
- China’s new drillship to go to ultradeep waters in oil and gas quest
For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2024.
