The China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) is said to have started drilling the Shendi Chuanke 1 Well in Sichuan province on Thursday, with a planned depth of 10,520 meters. According to the Xinhua News Agency, the project follows a similar-sized well that the CNPC began drilling in Xinjiang in May. It was the deepest well ever dug in China at the time.
Sichuan is home to some of China’s most significant shale gas reserves
The project is being carried out in Sichuan, China’s southwestern region known for beautiful mountain views, pandas, and some of the country’s greatest shale gas reserves. However, due to the intricate subterranean geology and tough terrain, the country’s state-owned oil companies have had minimal success in these areas.
China’s Xinjiang drilling operation
China began excavating earlier this year in the oil-rich Xinjiang region to learn more about the Earth’s underlying structure and test its drilling methods. The Xinjiang thin shaft will penetrate more than ten continental strata before reaching the cretaceous system, which consists of rocks going back 145 million years.
China is pressuring its energy businesses to improve fuel security
According to News 18, the Chinese government has purportedly been pressuring energy corporations in recent years to improve the country’s fuel security. It has also urged these industries to increase local output as recent heat waves have caused widespread power shortages.
The Impact of the Ukraine-Russia War on China
Furthermore, the present energy crisis caused by the protracted conflict between Russia and Ukraine, as well as geopolitical concerns, has led the Chinese government to investigate alternative oil-purchasing techniques. Furthermore, Chinese President Xi Jinping‘s administration is concerned about the prolonged global price volatility. Notably, China has been the world’s fourth-largest natural gas producer since 2021.