China confirms first large-scale ultra-deep shale gas field in Sichuan

A massive shale gas field with over 200 billion cubic meters of ultra-deep reserves has been confirmed in southwest China's Sichuan Basin, taking the country's exploration push into uncharted territory more than 4,500 meters underground.

China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) announced on Wednesday that its Ziyang Dongfeng shale gas field has secured official certification from the Ministry of Natural Resources. The field holds proven geological reserves of 235.687 billion cubic meters, marking the birth of China's first ultra-deep shale gas field of this size.

The breakthrough began in 2024, when the Ziyang 2 well tested at a daily industrial gas flow of 1.257 million cubic meters, marking a major milestone in the exploration of Cambrian Qiongzhusi Formation, the earth's oldest commercial shale layer which formed 540 million years ago.

Since then, technical teams have ramped up exploration and appraisal efforts, achieving increasingly higher test outputs and identifying a large, contiguous gas field buried between 4,500 and 5,200 meters deep.

"We conducted nearly one kilometer of systematic coring and more than 22,000 experimental analyses, allowing us to characterize the geology at the micrometer level. We integrated artificial intelligence into our geophysical technologies to clarify key features such as stratigraphy, sedimentation, and reservoir properties," said Zhang Zhuang, manager of the Oil and Gas Exploration Management Department at Sinopec's Southwest Oil and Gas Company.

"We also mastered ultra-deep shale gas drilling and fracturing technologies, forming a fully independent technological system for Cambrian ultra-deep shale gas exploration and development," said Zhang.

The Cambrian Qiongzhusi Formation, with its thick, hard-to-drill rock layers, poses enormous engineering challenges. Despite harsh downhole conditions of high temperature and high pressure, Chinese engineers achieved key technological breakthroughs and figured out how shale gas accumulates within the formation. This achievement opened a new chapter for shale gas exploration in China.

China confirms first large-scale ultra-deep shale gas field in Sichuan

Israel's Foreign Ministry has apologized for the brief detention of Gilles Michaud, Under-Secretary-General for Safety and Security at the United Nations Department of Safety and Security, at an Israeli airport, attributing the incident to human error, a UN spokesman said on Wednesday.

Farhan Haq, deputy spokesman for the UN secretary-general, said at a daily briefing that an apology had been received from Israel's Foreign Ministry over Tuesday's incident in which Gilles Michaud was questioned after arriving at Israel's Ben-Gurion Airport.

Haq said Michaud's visit had been aimed at discussing Israel's obligations to ensure the safety of UN personnel in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and the wider region. The security of UN staff and humanitarian workers, he said, is an essential precondition for UN's operations.

"Obviously he, like other UN officials, is accorded diplomatic protocols during their travel. In this particular incident in Israel, Under-Secretary-General Gilles Michaud received an apology from the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs for his reception at the airport, and they attributed the matter to human error," said the spokesman.

Israeli media reported on Tuesday that Michaud was briefly detained and questioned after arriving at Ben Gurion Airport, Israel's main international gateway near Tel Aviv. According to the reports, he was taken to a holding area and kept there for about 45 minutes, during which he was asked about an official visit he made to Gaza in August 2025.

Michaud was stopped and checked by Shin Bet, Israel's domestic security agency. He later described the treatment as "unusual" for a senior UN official, saying he had "never experienced anything like it" in any other country.

Israel apologizes after detention of senior UN official: spokesman