And that is not a cause of indigestion at all. But it is natural. It is shale gas.
SHANGHAI (AP) — China is reporting discoveries of major shale gas reserves in its western Sichuan region, a development that could drastically boost its domestic supplies of natural gas and temper demand for imports.
State-owned China National Petroleum Corp. has found shale gas reserves in at least 20 locations, with each able to produce over 10,000 cubic meters of gas per day, a company official confirmed Thursday.
And the reserves are huge.
China has so far not launched commercial shale gas operations but is partnering with Shell and other foreign companies seeking to improve its own technology. Chinese energy companies meanwhile have been investing in overseas reserves as part of their overall push to ensure access to crucial energy resources.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration has estimated that China has about 36 trillion cubic meters (1,300 trillion cubic feet) of recoverable shale gas, the biggest known reserves. The U.S. has about 23.4 trillion cubic meters (827 trillion cubic feet)
If you run the numbers however, the US has reserves that are about 2 1/2 times larger on a per capita basis. If we continue to use our energy more efficiently than the Chinese, America will do fine.