Technological breakthroughs in recovering ultra-deep extra-heavy oil had enhanced output at northwest China's Lukeqin Oilfield to over 10 million tonnes, said China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) on Monday.
Ultra-deep extra-heavy oil is an extremely hard-to-recover petroleum resource buried thousands of meters underground.
It's more than 100 times thicker than regular crude oil and is like black sludge, barely flowing at all at normal temperatures.
Located in the hinterland of the Turpan Basin, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, the heavy oil reservoirs of the Lukeqin Oilfield are generally buried deeper than 2,300 meters, with the maximum depth reaching 5,200 meters.
"Crude oil at the Lukeqin Oilfield features high density, high viscosity and high pour point, which constitute a world-class challenge for oil and gas development," said Wang Sheng, staff member at the reservoir geology research department of Lukeqin oil production management area.
According to oil production experts, as it is impossible to recover heavy oil reservoirs at Lukeqin Oilfield by traditional methods, they had innovated their crude oil development technologies to enhance the output.
"We innovate our technologies by injecting thin oil into the wellbore, enabling the heavy oil, which is too viscous to flow or be lifted, to be steadily pumped to the surface from 3,000 meters underground. The oil recovery factor of the oilfield has risen by 11 percentage points compared with the initial stage of development," said Zou Chenglin, executive director at the Lukeqin oil production management area.
The technological breakthrough helped enhance the annual output of Lukeqin Oilfield from 30,000 tonnes to a peak of 800,000 tonnes.
The annual output at the oilfield has remained at over 400,000 tonnes for 10 consecutive years.
Output at China's difficult-to-recover heavy oilfield surpasses 10 mln tonnes
A deepening fuel crisis is paralyzing daily life across Sudan, where long lines of vehicles at the few operating stations have become a daily routine.
With domestic refining crippled and import prices rising, the country is under mounting pressure over its energy supply. The lingering and spreading crisis has also driven local prices sharply higher.
"I started queuing for gas at 7 this morning, and I've been waiting for over two hours now. I don't know how much longer I'll have to wait. I haven't been able to fill up for a week. And the price of gasoline has further gone up recently. Now it costs 35,000 Sudanese pounds (about 58.19 U.S. dollars) per gallon. It has increased by 5,000 Sudanese pounds in just several days," said Osman Faisal, a resident.
The crisis stems from war damage to Sudan's oil infrastructure. Relentless clashes since fighting erupted in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have forced major oil fields to shut down. The Khartoum refinery, which once met about 70 percent of national fuel needs, has shut down. Several oil fields are also offline, forcing Sudan to rely almost entirely on imports.
The escalation in the Middle East since late February has led to significant fluctuations in international energy market prices, and Sudan's domestic supply is directly exposed to that backdrop.
This external shock has been coupled with the depreciation of the Sudanese pound against the U.S. dollar, making every imported shipment more expensive. Caught between rising global prices and a plummeting local currency, gas station operators are forced to constantly recalculate their rates and frequently shut down pumps.
The unpredictability forced workers into an impossible daily trade-off between earning a living and waiting in line.
"The Sudanese pound continues to depreciate against the U.S. dollar, exacerbating the fuel crisis. Hopefully, the exchange rate will stabilize as soon as possible. Every morning when we wake up, we are forced to make a choice -- go to work or queue for gas?" said Adnan Osman, another resident.
In addition to disrupting people's travel, the fuel shortage has driven up transportation and delivery costs, pushing the prices of food and daily necessities higher.
"The prices of food, including vegetables and bread, are also on the rise. The life of everyone in this country is being severely affected," said Alrazy Mohamed, a resident.
Sudan paralyzed by fuel crisis as war, currency collapse choke supply
