China now drilling for gas six miles beneath earth's surface

What is apparently the deepest gas well in China could bolster the country's energy independence.

Published: July 21, 2023 8:16pm

China is drilling more than six miles beneath the Earth's surface in search of gasoline reserves, which appears to be a record for the deepest well in Asia after setting a previous record earlier this year, according to state media.

The outlet Xinhua reported Thursday that PetroChina Southwest Oil and Gas Field was digging a well that just reached 6.2 miles but is designed to go as deep as 6.5 miles.

The company is attempt to access what has been described as "multiple sets of high-quality reservoirs superimposed in the ultra-deep layers in the area. It's located in the Sichuan Basin in southwestern China. 

The well, known as Chuanke 1, appears to now be the deepest well in Asia. In March, another Chinese state-run media site reported a 5.8-mile-deep well in the Tarim Basin, northwest China.

China has recently made a sizable investments in fossil fuels, boosting energy security while also continuing to invest in renewable forms of energy.

Reuters reported earlier this month that the country's liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports in June marked a 5-month high.

Crude oil imports that month increased by 45.3% for the year, which the wire service says is the second-highest number of its kind in the books.

Last year, China was said to have spent more than half a trillion dollars on clean energy and reportedly is on track to hit some of its green energy goals several years ahead of schedule. 

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