China National Offshore Oil Corporation(CNOOC)has achieved a major breakthrough in deep metamorphic buried-hill exploration in the South China Sea,marking the first successful discovery of metamorphic sandstone and slate buried hills in China's offshore waters,Securities Times reported on Wednesday.
CNOOC reported that exploratory well WZ10-5S-2d at the Weizhou 10-5 South oil and gas field,located in the Beibu Gulf of the northern South China Sea,encountered 211 meters of oil and gas-bearing formations.
The exploration significantly guides and demonstrates the development of deep and buried hill oil and gas exploration in China,said Zhou Xinhuai,CEO of CNOOC,according to Beijing-based Securities Times.
CNOOC will further intensify efforts in key theories and technologies for deep oil and gas exploration and development,enhance independent innovation in science and technology,steadily advance oil and gas reserve growth and production,and ensure a stable energy supply,Zhou added,as he was cited by Securities Times.
Xu Changgui,Chief Geologist of CNOOC,noted that the company has recently intensified theoretical innovation and addressed key technological challenges in complex exploration areas such as deep formations and buried hills.In the Beibu Gulf Basin,CNOOC has achieved major breakthroughs in exploring Paleozoic granite and Proterozoic metamorphic sandstone and slate buried hills.
These advances highlight the vast potential for exploration in buried hill formations,support secondary exploration in mature oilfields,and mark the official start of large-scale buried hill exploration in the basin,Xu said,Securities Times reported.
China's oil and gas supply continues to grow steadily.According to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics,oil and gas production maintained stable growth in the first half of 2025.
The country's capacity to ensure energy supply has improved significantly,with large-scale industrial crude oil output reaching 108 million tons,up 1.3 percent year-on-year.Industrial natural gas output hit 130.8 billion cubic meters,reaching a record high,representing a 5.8 percent year-on-year increase.
