China’s Gas Output to Soar

China's gas production is likely to soar over the next 20 years, and its oil output will rise steadily, the Ministry of Land and Resources said Thursday.

Combined oil and gas output is expected to rise to 360 million tonnes of oil equivalent by 2015 and 450 million tonnes by 2030, up from 280 million tonnes last year, with natural gas being the main contributor to growth in oil and gas output.

The country has discovered 52 trillion cubic meters of gas, of which, 32 trillion cubic meters can be exploited, the ministry said.

It said the country's natural gas output will reach 300 billion cubic meters by 2030. The Ordos Basin in Inner Mongolia autonomous region, the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region and the Sichuan Basin in Sichuan province will remain the country's major gas-producing regions.

Meanwhile, the country can maintain annual crude output at the level of 200 million tonnes over the next 20 years. China's annual oil production may peak around 220 million tonnes, the report said, without specifying when the peak will be reached.