On August 30, China achieved a major milestone in offshore heavy oil thermal recovery, with cumulative production exceeding 5 million tons, making it the first country in the world to realize large-scale offshore heavy oil thermal development, according to China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC).
Heavy oil is highly viscous, dense, and prone to solidification, making it extremely challenging to extract. Compared with onshore fields, offshore platforms face limited operational space and higher costs. Large-scale thermal recovery of heavy oil presents both technical and economic challenges and has long been considered a world-class difficulty.
China is one of the world’s four major heavy oil producers, with abundant offshore reserves requiring thermal development. Proven high-viscosity heavy oil reserves in offshore areas exceed 600 million tons, about 20 percent of China’s total proven heavy oil resources, offering vast development potential. Current offshore heavy oil thermal production is concentrated in the Bohai Bay. Production has already surpassed 1.3 million tons so far this year, with annual output expected to reach 2 million tons.
To efficiently and economically exploit these reserves, CNOOC has pioneered the “fewer wells, higher output” approach. Using high-intensity steam injection and multi-component thermal fluids, combined with auxiliary gases and chemicals, and high-efficiency lifting techniques, CNOOC has significantly increased single-well output and recovery, overcoming low production and heat loss issues.
(Executive editor: Yuan Ting)
