Sinopec, BP may explore shale gas
By Richard Fu |
October 30, 2010, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
SINOPEC Corp is discussing with BP Plc shale gas exploration in China as it increases investment in such cleaner-burning fuels.
The move came as China is seeking to tap such unconventional gas resources to reduce its reliance on oil and coal. China is gradually allowing foreign companies with technical expertise and technology to explore shale gas in the country.
Chief Financial Officer Wang Xinhua said on a conference call yesterday that Sinopec and BP are discussing potential cooperation but he didn't elaborate. He added Sinopec's subsidiary in east China now owns 42 shale gas blocks covering 190,000 square kilometers.
Shale, which is an underground rock that holds oil and gas reserves, has become a key energy source in the United States thanks to new techniques in shale exploration.
A Ministry of Land and Resources official said this week in Shanghai that China will auction six shale gas exploration blocks, each as large as 7,000 square kilometers, to state energy firms within a month.
CNOOC Ltd, China's top offshore oil producer, this month agreed to buy a stake in a shale gas project in Texas in the US. PetroChina Co signed a deal with Royal Dutch Shell last year to explore for shale gas in Sichuan Province.
Wang said Sinopec is optimistic over its fourth-quarter result after China raised fuel prices earlier this week. Sinopec, the nation's largest oil refiner and second-largest oil producer, on Thursday said third-quarter net profit rose 15 percent to 19.6 billion yuan (US$2.9 billion).
CNOOC posted a 64 percent jump in revenue for the third quarter on higher output and prices. It raised its full-year output target by 13 percent to 329 million barrels of oil equivalent.
The move came as China is seeking to tap such unconventional gas resources to reduce its reliance on oil and coal. China is gradually allowing foreign companies with technical expertise and technology to explore shale gas in the country.
Chief Financial Officer Wang Xinhua said on a conference call yesterday that Sinopec and BP are discussing potential cooperation but he didn't elaborate. He added Sinopec's subsidiary in east China now owns 42 shale gas blocks covering 190,000 square kilometers.
Shale, which is an underground rock that holds oil and gas reserves, has become a key energy source in the United States thanks to new techniques in shale exploration.
A Ministry of Land and Resources official said this week in Shanghai that China will auction six shale gas exploration blocks, each as large as 7,000 square kilometers, to state energy firms within a month.
CNOOC Ltd, China's top offshore oil producer, this month agreed to buy a stake in a shale gas project in Texas in the US. PetroChina Co signed a deal with Royal Dutch Shell last year to explore for shale gas in Sichuan Province.
Wang said Sinopec is optimistic over its fourth-quarter result after China raised fuel prices earlier this week. Sinopec, the nation's largest oil refiner and second-largest oil producer, on Thursday said third-quarter net profit rose 15 percent to 19.6 billion yuan (US$2.9 billion).
CNOOC posted a 64 percent jump in revenue for the third quarter on higher output and prices. It raised its full-year output target by 13 percent to 329 million barrels of oil equivalent.
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