CNOOC says finds large coal seam gas field in north China

China's CNOOC announced on Monday the discovery of a large deep-reservoir coalbed methane field in the north of the country with proven geological reserves of over 100 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas.

It is the second sizeable gas discovery onshore for the offshore oil and gas producer.

The discovery well, SM2-33-CH1, part of the Shenfu coal seam gas field in Yulin of Shaanxi province, found 16.5 meters of coal seams at about 2,011 meters below the surface, CNOOC said in a statement.

The well yielded 19,000 cubic meters of gas a day during test production, it said.

Shenfu becomes CNOOC's second major coalbed methane field after Linxing field in neighbouring Shanxi province discovered in early 2021 that has similar-sized proven reserves.

A total of more than 100 exploration wells have been planned at Shenfu, CNOOC added.

CNOOC is scheduled to release third-quarter earnings on Tuesday.

The state oil major vowed in 2020 to raise the share of natural gas to make up half of its total output by 2035, up from 21% in 2021, in its effort to contribute to a national carbon neutral target by 2060.

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