South China Sea oil & gas discovery results confirm rich hydrocarbon promise

Shanghai Offshore Petroleum Company (SHOPC), a subsidiary of China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec), has taken steps to evaluate its oil and gas discovery in ​​the Beibu Gulf Basin in the South China Sea, resulting in what the player says is the highest daily oil and gas output in that particular area.

Illustration; Source: Sinopec

According to the Chinese player, the results of the Hai 3 well test in the Weixi exploration area led to an oil and gas output equivalent to 738 cubic meters of crude oil and 280,000 cubic meters of natural gas per day, with the oil and gas equivalent being  1,010 cubic meters.

The company claims this is the record for the highest daily oil and gas production in the Beibu Gulf’s Haizhong Depression, part of the Weizhou oilfield, where SHOPC previously proved reserves exceeding 10 million tons. In March, work was launched to increase reserves and expand production in its northern part, where the well is situated.

With an operating depth of 4,600 meters, including a horizontal displacement of 1,300 meters, a bottom hole temperature of 150 degrees Celsius, and a bottom hole pressure of 73 MPa, the Hai 3 is said to be the firm’s deepest and highest temperature and pressure exploration well in the Weixi block.

SHOPC’s activities are focused on medium and deep sea oil and gas exploration, development, and engineering services. The firm says it has discovered 19 oil and gas fields, such as Pinghu and Chunxiao, and contributed to the development of China’s offshore oil and gas industry.

Sinopec closed several partnership deals with global companies lately. The most recent one was the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Saudi ACWA Power to collaborate on the production of green hydrogen and ammonia.

Another MoU was signed with Petronas, aiming to foster economic growth and development in the Asia Pacific and look into options for accelerating the low-carbon shift. The firm also inked a strategic cooperation agreement with TotalEnergies to explore new opportunities in biofuels, green hydrogen, carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS), and decarbonization.