Shale gas exploration and exploitation in China is still at an early stage.

Natural gas accounted for 4% of China's total energy consumption in 2010. The natural gas share of total world energy demand was nearly six times that, according to the BP Statistical Review of World Energy 2011.

In the first 5 months of 2011, Chinese crude oil import dependence reached 55.2%, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

China's shale gas resource is 100 trillion cu m, and the technically recoverable shale gas resource is 36 trillion cu m.

Shale gas in China

Here are key dates and activities in the progression of shale gas exploration and exploitation in China.

Before 2004: Study foreign shale gas exploration technology.

From 2005 to 2007: Shale gas resource exploitation.

In 2008: Exploitation of the Upper Yangtze region and planning shale gas project.

In 2009: Evaluating shale gas resource potential and defining favorable exploration targets in key areas.

In 2010: Carrying out exploitation in the Sichuan, Chongqing, Guizhou, and Hubei shale gas areas; conducting shale gas resource exploitation in the Lower Yangtze Anhui, Zhejiang, and Jiangsu regions; and carrying out preliminary shale gas research in the northern region (north, northeast, and northwest China).

In 2011: Defining areas of probable shale gas reserves in China.

According to the preliminary evaluation in China, the shale gas resource is 21.5-45 billion cu m, mainly distributed in five regions: the south, northwest, north, northeast, and Qinghai-Tibet. The south and the northwest have the most favorable reservoir conditions and are the areas of main concentration.