Evaluation of natural gas hydrate resources in the South China Sea using a new genetic analogy method

Natural gas hydrate(NGH)has attracted much attention as a new alternative energy globally.However,evaluations of global NGH resources in the past few decades have casted a decreasing trend,where the estimate as of today is less than one ten-thousandth of the estimate forty years ago.The NGH researches in China started relatively late,but achievements have been made in the South China Sea(SCS)in the past two decades.Thirty-five studies had been carried out to evaluate NGH resource,and results showed a flat trend,ranging from 60 to 90 billion tons of oil equivalent,which was 2-3 times of the evaluation results of technical recoverable oil and gas resources in the SCS.The big difference is that the previous 35 group of NGH resource evaluations for the SCS only refers to the prospective gas resource with low grade level and high uncertainty,which cannot be used to guide exploration or researches on development strategies.Based on the analogy with the genetic mechanism of conventional oil and gas resources,this study adopts the newly proposed genetic method and geological analogy method to evaluate the NGH resource.Results show that the conventional oil and gas resources are 346.29×10^(8)t,the volume of NGH and free dynamic field are 25.19×10^(4)km^(3) and(2.05-2.48)×10^(6)km^(3),and the total amount of in-situ NGH resources in the SCS is about(4.47-6.02)×10^(12)m^(3).It is considered that the resource of hydrate should not exceed that of conventional oil and gas,so it is 30 times lower than the previous estimate.This study provides a more reliable geological basis for further NGH exploration and development.

Analysis of the supply-demand status of China's natural gas to 2020

The reserves, distribution, production and utilization of natural gas resources in China are introduced in this paper which leads a point of view that China＇s natural gas resources are relatively rich while distributed unevenly. The future production and consumption of China＇s natural gas are predicted using the Generalized Weng model and the Gray prediction model. The prediction suggests that with the increasing gas consumption China＇s natural gas production will not meet demand after 2010. In order to ease the supply-demand gap and realize rational development and utilization of China＇s natural gas resources, this paper puts forward some measures, such as using advanced technologies for natural gas development, establishing a long-distance pipeline network to rationalize the availability of natural gas across China and importing foreign natural gas and liquid natural gas （LNG）.

Accumulation mechanism of mantle-derived helium resources in petroliferous basins, eastern China

A series of marginal-sea basins and fault-depression basins were formed in eastern China under the background of subduction of the West Pacific plate.Different types of helium-rich natural gas reservoirs(He>1000 ppm,1 ppm=1μmol mol^(-1))have been found in these basins:helium-rich CO_(2)gas reservoirs,helium-rich N_(2)gas reservoirs,and helium-rich hydrocarbon gas reservoirs.Based on the analysis of gas geochemical data,the source and accumulation mechanism of helium in these heliumrich natural gas reservoirs were discussed.Helium-rich natural gas has relatively high 3He/4He ratios(0.88-4.91 Ra,average 2.82 Ra).The ^(3)He/^(4)He ratio characteristics of mantle xenoliths and mantle-derived CO_(2)gas reservoirs indicate that the helium in these helium-rich natural gas reservoirs is mainly mantle-derived(>70%).The original mantle volatile is mainly CO_(2)with a low helium concentration(He<200 ppm),and the enrichment of mantle-derived helium in the gas reservoir is mainly related to the dissolution and mineralization of CO_(2).During this process,the CO_(2)/3He ratio decreases from 2×10^(9)to approximately 2×10^(6).As CO_(2)dissolves and mineralizes,the concentration of conservative gases(He and N_(2))increases in the remaining CO_(2)gas proportionally to the loss of CO_(2).Large amounts of carbonate minerals,such as dawsonite,which are relatively enriched in 13C,are found in CO_(2)reservoirs in eastern China.The relative enrichment of^(12)C in residual CO_(2)gas is important evidence of the dissolution and mineralization of CO_(2).The relative abundance of mantle-derived helium and N_(2)gas increases thousands of times during the dissolution and mineralization of CO_(2),which is the main accumulation mechanism of mantle-derived helium-rich CO_(2)gas reservoirs and helium-rich N_(2)gas reservoirs.Helium-rich gas from the mantle is mixed with alkane gas generated by organic matter in the sedimentary basin to form helium-rich hydrocarbon gas reservoirs.

Maintaining Cooperation within Competition:The Inevitable Path of China’s Energy Cooperation in the Middle East

The multi-polarization of political situation creates beneficial conditions for Chinese petroleum corporations to enter foreign market of prospecting and drilling of oil and natural gas resources.Chinese petroleum corporations should adopt“Outward Expansion”strategy and directly participate in international gaming over the cooperative development and drilling of overseas oil and natural gas resources.On this aspect,the government should not only enhance its macro strategic guidance to Chinese petroleum corporations,but also offer more support by means of preferential policies so as to provide more encouragement to these corporations.Furthermore,the government should strengthen its toughness and intensity on its extension of energy diplomacy.In order to make some achievement in the reform and evolution of geopolitical pattern concerning energy of the world,China should maximize its national interest on energy strategy through“cooperation against the background of competition,”so as to obtain a guarantee on the stable and safe long-term supply of overseas energy for sustained development and smooth rise of China.The model of“Cooperation against the Background of Competition”not only fits for the domestic conditions of China,but also suits the trend of development on the energy market of the world.