China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) has nailed down a plan for developing a major natural gas find in the South China Sea. The company said it plans to start commercial production at the Dongfang 1-1 gas field Sept. 15, 2003, with initial flow of 1.6 billion cu m(bcm)/year, expandable to 2.4 bcm/year.
The field is 113 km off Dongfang city in Hainan province. Discovered in 1992, the 287.7 sq km field holds estimated natural gas reserves of 99.68 bcm.
The field development plan calls for CNOOC to build one central offshore platform and three production platforms. CNOOC will use the gas for fertilizer production and power generation in Hainan province.
CNOOC is producing about 3.7 bcm/year of natural gas from the Ya 13-1 gas field in the South China Sea for power generation in Hong Kong and fertilizer production in Hainan. The company is also considering building a 4,000-km gas pipeline to move natural gas production in the South China Sea to markets in southern and eastern China.