China Petroleum and Chemical Corp. (Sinopec) said on Nov. 12 that it has added 83 billion cubic meters (Bcm) of newly proven natural gas reserve at the Chuanxi Field in the Sichuan Basin.

The new reserve, certified by the Ministry of Natural resources, raises the field’s total proven reserve to 114 Bcm, Sinopec said.

Key reservoirs of the field, spread over 138 sq km in the western part of the basin, are buried 6,000 m below the surface and are high in acidic content, it said.

Sinopec in October announced some 192 Bcm of certified new reserve at its top shale gas project Fuling, China’s first major commercial development of the unconventional resource that sits also in the Sichuan Basin.

China sees natural gas a key bridge fuel on its long journey to its carbon-neutral target in 2060, with national energy producers vowing to boost the share of the fuel in their oil and gas portfolios over the next 10 to 15 years.