The newly-found gas reserves, situated inside Songliao Basin innortheast China's Heilongjiang Province, is the largest of the kind ever discovered in the region, said senior engineer Yang Fengping with Daqing Oilfield.

Yang, who is responsible for prospecting, said that at least 20 billion cubic meters of gas can be exploited from the strata.

A recent test by oil prospectors of Daqing Oilfield proved a single well sunk into the gas-bearing structure can produce 530,000 cubic meters of gas daily.

The gas hidden in the basin contains as much as 97 percent of methane, which is a main material for producing petrochemical products such as polyethylene.

Heralding the new finding as a breakthrough in Daqing's oil prospecting efforts, Hou Qijun, deputy general manager of the oilfield, said new gas reserves provide the oilfield with a foundation for sustainable development in the future.

Before this, oil prospectors verified 18 other gas fields, with the combined gas reserves exceeding 40 billion cubic meters, of which, 15 billion could be exploited.

The new reserves are necessary as the reserves of Daqing Oilfield, the country's largest, are declining.

Currently, the proven exploitable oil reserves at Daqing are 570 million tons. The oilfield has so far produced 1.7 billion tons of crude oil.

(Xinhua News Agency December 30, 2002)