China's natural gas output to double in a decade

China's natural gas output is predicted to hit 150 billion to 200 billion cubic meters in the following ten years, doubling the current volume, according to Vice President of PetroChina<601857><857>, Jia Chengzao.

Last year, China's output of natural gas surged 23.1% over a year earlier to reach 69.31 billion cubic meters, according to China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Association.

PetroChina, the largest oil producer in China, has maintained the annual output growth of 10 billion cubic meters for two straight years, according to Jia. The natural gas output of PetroChina accounted for 75% of the country's total.

China's natural gas output would be boosted by the recent discoveries of new gas fields, such as the proven reserves of Jidong Nanpu Oil Field in North China's Bohai Bay, with 1.18 billion tons of oil and gas, added Jia.

Additionally, industry insiders trust that the Longgang gasfield in the southeastern Sichuan will contain at least 700 billion cubic meters of estimated reserves, and the exact proven reserves are more likely to be announced by China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) around this year end, said Jia.