Major gas field in Xinjiang found

Source: Xinhua  |   2008-12-15  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

CHINA National Mineral Resource Committee yesterday said it found a major gas field with a proven reserve of 100 billion cubic meters in north Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

It is the first reserve of this size ever discovered around the Junggar Basin, according to Chen Xinfa, general manager of Xinjiang Oilfield Co, a subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corp.

"The Klameli gas field is also our company's first complete gas field ever found. Its exploitation will alleviate the gas shortage in north Xinjiang," said Chen.

Kuang Lichun, deputy general manager of the Xinjiang company, which is in charge of prospecting, admitted the reserve, about 250 kilometers away from Karamay City, was actually found in 2006. The positive results obtained from a test well occurred in September 2006. He failed to give a reason for the two-year delay in disclosing the discovery.

More test wells have been sunk since the discovery. The Klameli gas field will produce 3.38 billion cubic meters of gas this year alone, of which 20 percent will be sold to cities of Urumqi and Sihezi, according to Kuang. The rest of the gas is for the company's own use.

The Junggar Basin is said to have 2.5 trillion cubic meters of gas in reserve. The Xinjiang oil company, which is responsible for exploiting oil and gas reserves there, planned to boost its annual gas output to 5 billion cubic meters by 2010. It will double by 2015, the firm said.