Sinopec to Raise Shale Gas Output

China Petrochemical Corp. or Sinopec plans to increase its shale gas output to at least 2 billion cubic meters a year by the end of 2015, China Daily reported.

Company’s output will account for about a third of China’s total shale gas output.

The company also plans to raise its spending on shale gas and oil sector this year to $158, almost twice last year’s spending.

Sinopec won the rights during China's first shale-gas auction last July to explore the Nanchuan block, which spans Guizhou province and Chongqing municipality, the newspaper said.

It has finished drilling three shale-gas wells so far and is drilling another seven, including some in the Nanchuan block.

Sinopec owns three shale-gas blocks that cover 17,000 square kilometers, in addition to blocks overlapping with its oil and conventional gas blocks.