China Increases Oil, Gas Exploration as Demand Grows

China plans to spend an average of $74.6 million a year on oil and gas exploration over the next 20 years to keep pace with the country’s rapidly growing demand.

Officials say $30.4 million of the $74.6 would be spent on exploring land resources, while the remaining $44.2 million would be allotted to offshore exploration. In the last decade China has discovered 38 oil basins in the South China Sea and the southern portion of the Yellow Sea. During that time, China spent an average of only $7.6 million a year on exploration.

In 2010 China imported 54 percent of its oil and 13 percent of its gas. Oil major, BP predicted in a report released last week that China’s dependency on imports would increase to 80 percent for oil and 40 percent for gas by 2030.

In 2010 China’s oil demand rose 11.43% over the demand in 2009 and consumption is expected to continue to rise in 2011 with predictions of 9.5 million barrels per day.

According to BP’s report Russia, India and Brazil are three other markets with emerging economies that along with China will make up most of the growing demand. In the next twenty years natural gas is expected to grow rapidly along with non-fossil fuels, like nuclear, hydro and renewables (solar, wind, geothermal and biofuels).

In a statement BP said, “Global liquids demand is forecast to reach 102.4 million barrels per day (mmbpd) in 2030. The net growth of 16.5 mmbpd over the next 20 years comes exclusively from the emerging economies of the non-OECD (Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development)” countries.