PetroChina ramps up shale targets

  PetroChina has boosted its shale gas output target to 2.6 billion cubic metres (cm) for next year, the company said. Sun Longde, PetroChina’s vice president, told local media unveiled the new target, the equivalent of about 2% of China’s natural gas production in 2013. Previously, the company planned to increase its shale production for 2015 to 1.5 billion cm. Sun said PetroChina’s Changning and Weiyuan blocks, in Sichuan province, will each produce 1 billion cm of shale gas. The Zhaotong Block, in Yunnan province, will produce an additional 500 million cm. By 2020 PetroChina wants to produce 11 billion cm of shale gas. Sun added that, at present, the company has 10 shale gas wells either