Shale gas production in China
China’s gas goals face unconventional hurdles
Beijing’s strong emphasis on domestic production growth will require heavier investment from the country’s NOCs, as remaining reserves become harder to exploit
China’s domestic gas output will continue to grow for the rest of this decade, as the country’s energy giants eke out greater production at prolific legacy fields. But later gains could become harder to come by, as upstream development will eventually have to shift to complex frontier plays, both onshore and offshore, that are more challenging to exploit. China has managed to increase gas output by more than 10bcm/yr for the past six years, a streak the central government is keen to continue. PetroChina, Sinopec and CNOOC—which together accounted for 83% of gas produced in China in the first nine months of this year—have persistently sustained or increased domestic investment, under governme
Also in this section
21 February 2025
While large-scale planned LNG schemes in sub-Saharan Africa have faced fresh problems, FLNG projects are stepping into that space
20 February 2025
Greater social mobility means increased global demand for refined fuels and petrochemical products, with Asia leading the way in the expansion of refining capacity
19 February 2025
The EU would do well to ease its gas storage requirements to avoid heavy purchase costs this summer, with the targets having created market distortion while giving sellers a significant advantage over buyers
18 February 2025
Deliveries to China decline by around 1m b/d from move to curb crude exports to Shandong port, putting Iran under further economic pressure
