China CNOOC strikes it big time offshore with first-ever shale breakthrough

The country's first offshore shale oil exploration well Weiye-1, located at the southwestern trough of the Beibu Gulf Basin in the South China Sea, recorded daily production of 20 cubic meters of oil and 1,589 cubic meters of natural gas, CNOOC said on Thursday in a release.

The Beibu Gulf Basin holds around 1.2 billion metric tons of prospective shale oil resources with broad prospects for future exploration, it said.

Shale oil is an unconventional product derived from oil shale rock fragments.

Domestic oil giants, including CNOOC, China Petrochemical Corp and China National Petroleum Corp－the country's largest oil and gas producer and supplier－are all making greater efforts to tap shale deposits despite their geological challenges and higher costs, amid government calls to boost domestic energy supply diversity and security.