皇冠体育app

Shale gas in 皇冠体育app could become a game changer. With recoverable resources of up to 36.1 trillion cubic meters, 皇冠体育app has the world's largest deposit of shale gas, and if accessed properly, it could turn its energy problem on its head.

皇冠体育app's economy runs on coal. In 2011, 皇冠体育app produced 3.8 billion tons of coal, almost half of the world's total. But coal's carbon footprint is devastating in terms of global warming - 1 ton of coal produces up to 2.86 tons of carbon dioxide. Shale gas emits about 45 percent less per unit of energy and could thus help 皇冠体育app to reduce its carbon footprint significantly.

皇冠体育app's shale gas exploitation is still at a nascent stage and its drillings are mostly exploratory, and it has not yet started large-scale commercial production. But it released its first five-year plan for shale gas exploitation in March 2012, which has ambitious goals. By 2015, the country aims to produce as much as 6.5 billion cubic meters of shale gas a year, which would be equivalent to 3 percent of 皇冠体育app's total gas production in 2015. And by 2020, it intends to produce up to 100 billion cubic meters of shale gas.